Little Red Wagon
by Addicted to Dreams
Summary: What happens when Momo gets detention which leaves Ryoma and Eiji hanging out after school? Then a series of event has Eiji and Ryoma tied back to back in a not so abandoned warehouse. Now the regulars must save them, but what will be the cost?
1. Chapter 1 Eiji's Idea of Fun

Heya Addicted to Dreams here again. o.~ I'm back with another Prince of Tennis story.

A little to know about this story—I got the idea after reading the book Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism. The plot of my story is nothing like that of the book, there is no hypnotizing though I think that's a good idea for a story later on. I just wanted to give it credit!

I **do not own** Prince of Tennis, the idea of wagons, greedy middle age men, and the ability to write good stories. -.-;

**Please Enjoy!**

Eiji's Idea of Fun

Ryoma Echizen was sitting in history class watching the minutes tick away. The teacher's voice became just a buzz in the background and he continued to ignore it. His best friend Takeshi Momoshiro, also know as Momo, was messing around with a piece of paper on his desk. Once he seemed satisfied with what he had down he folded the paper in half, then folded it again and dropped it onto the floor. He stepped on the paper then pushed it to where it was close enough for Ryoma to grab. Ryoma, very causally, bent down and picked up the note. He unfolded it and took a look. It read 'Hey Ryoma, want to do something after school today because it's Friday and Tezuka gave us a day off?'

It was very rare that this happened. It just turned out that Tezuka had a family get-together today and that he thought he would give everyone a break. Ryoma thought it over. They could probably do the usual and go get burgers to eat. He scratched a quick 'yeah sure' on the note then refolded it. Instead of doing what Momo did to get the letter across the open space, because Ryoma didn't have that long of legs, he tossed the paper over. Luckily the paper landed in Momo's lap. Momo just finished righting a response when the teacher slapped her hand on to his desk.

"Takeshi Momoshiro, are you passing notes in my class?" Her eyes blazed with hatred. "Who is your accomplice?"

Momo did his best to keep his calm. He replied, "I'm not passing notes."

The teacher ripped the paper away from Momo with a triumphant grin. She took a look at what it said. The name Ryoma caught her eye. "Momoshiro and Ryoma Echizen!"

The teacher turned on her heels to face the seventh grader who had managed to get into her eighth grade class.

"Ryoma, I'm very disappointed in you for helping Momoshiro goof off in class. This is your only warning. No passing notes! Now seeing as you were written to and not the writer I'll let you off with that." The teacher turned back to Momo. "And as for you, detention!"

"What?" Momo gasped. "But I-"

"Momoshiro you will have detention for today only. You should thank me for being so lenient."

"Thanks," Momo said sarcastically.

"Much better." The teacher walked back to the front of the classroom before she broke into uncontrollable laughter.

"Teacher?" Asked one of the students in the front of the class. They were a total suck up because in reality no one cared for this teacher much.

"I'm sorry it's just," The teacher straightened herself and fixed her glasses that had been falling off her nose. "Momoshiro, you're idea of something entertaining to do after school just tickled my funny bone. Do you usually do stuff like that?"

The teacher began to laugh again. None of the students knew what to make of it. Ryoma was now curious as to what his friend had written. Momo was hurt and offended. In his defense, he called out, "I don't see what's so funny about that!"

The teacher finally gaining her composure took another look at then note before placing it in her purse that was on the side of her desk. That note was a keeper. "Momoshiro, you may not realize this but that sarcastic thank you, you gave me earlier was well earned on my part. If I had let you just walk off I'm not sure if we would be seeing you on Monday."

"What do you mean?" Momo was fairly certain she didn't earn anything from him.

"I had Shusuke Fuji in my class last year and I know for a fact if you had gone through with your plans you would be on the run, therefore you wouldn't be here on Monday." The teacher grabbed her lesson book that had been all but forgotten and turned back to the chalkboard. "Now what was I saying last…?"

The rest of history class went uneventful. If Ryoma had not been thinking so much about what was said on the note he might have noticed a blue van with the hot pink words 'Weeper Window Wipers' on it's side. Of course it wouldn't have made much of a difference, all it would have done was made him question the van's owner's tastes. After class was over, which was only fifteen minutes after the note incident. Ryoma gathered his stuff to leave.

"Ah sorry Echizen, I didn't mean to get caught." Momo said gloomily.

"Ah it's okay Momo." Ryoma was about to leave when he turned back around and asked, "So what was in the note that the teacher though was so funny?"

Momoshiro's face darkened and he said, "I just though it would be fun to stalk Fuji. We both know Fuji is going to want to go with Tezuka to that family thing after school. I was thinking Fuji might follow Tezuka so I thought it would be fun to take pictures of him hiding in bushes and behind parked cars."

"…" Ryoma was at a loss for words. That was the most stupid thing he had almost been dragged into doing after school ever. He shook his head at Momo as he walked out of the classroom.

Ryoma was almost outside of the gate when a cheerful voice called out to him. Just by the sound of his voice he could tell it was Eiji Kikumaru. "Ochibi wait up!"

Ryoma stopped and waited.

"I heard about what happened to Momo," He said when he finally reached Ryoma.

"How did you hear about that?" Ryoma was slightly surprised. The school may be big but he had never heard of a rumor spreading around that fast!

"I told him." Ryoma heard the words and a slight chill went up his spine. He wasn't scared for himself oh no, he was scared for Momo. Standing behind him was the genius himself, Fuji.

"Fuji how did you hear about it?" Ryoma asked the brown-haired, blue eyed, smiling like there's no tomorrow, teen.

"Saa… I have my ways." Fuji said quietly.

Let's just say Ryoma was not surprised anymore. Ryoma pulled his cap off and placed it over his heart. "Rest in peace Momoshiro."

With that Fuji began to laugh as he walked off. Eiji, who had also silently mourned for Momo began to talk again. "Ryoma want to hang out with me instead?"

"Uh." Ryoma put his cap back on. "Well I was planning on-"

"We'll have so much fun! Oishi will ordinarily hang out with me after school but today he has something else to do. I guess you can say we're in the same boat. How about we turn this ship around and head straight for Fun Island?" Eiji had been watching too much American TV lately. He was starting to sound like Spongebob.

Ryoma, who had after leaving class decided he would just go home how and practice tennis, was now in a pickle. He didn't want to play some weird game with Eiji, but he didn't want to disappoint him either. What to do what to do…? Just then Ryoma went into a state were he could see figments of his imagination, which was very limited by the way. Just as if he was in a fictional story an angel version of Ryoma appeared on his left shoulder. It wore his tennis uniform with the jacket on. It had a light blue racket in its right hand and a ball in its left. There were white wings on its back and a tiny halo above its head. Then in a puff of black smoke a devil version of Ryoma stood on his right shoulder. This one wore his school uniform but with out the jacket. It had on Ryoma's cap, which was pulled down to cover its left eye. This one had bat wings on it back, a small pointy tail, and two devil horns. This Ryoma had a black and red racket.

"Why do you get the left shoulder, that's my spot?" The little devil shouted as it pointed its finger at the angel. It sounded like Ryoma but the voice was just a little squeakier.

"Because the left arm is stronger which suits me better." The angel said smugly.

"What are you talking about twit? That's my arm!" The devil looked furious. Ryoma, who thought he might be going crazy, held his tongue and refrained from mentioning that it was, in reality, his arm.

"Enough that's not what we're here to talk about. Should we go with Eiji or not? I say we should because if we just go home Nanjiro will just beat us in a game of tennis." The angel said logically.

"Well maybe if I made some decisions once and awhile we wouldn't lose to that pervert!" The devil grumbled.

"Enough! We'll settle this like we always do!" A net appeared just below Ryoma's nose. It stretched out into thin air. The angel began to bounce the ball on Ryoma's left shoulder. The angel tossed the ball then hit it to the devil. It was a twist serve! There was now a full court in front of Ryoma. All the lines were there along with a judge who called out, "Fifteen love."

Awhile later the judge called out, "Game to Angel Echizen, six to zero."

"What, not again," Moaned the devil.

"Mada Mada dane Devil." With those last words from the angel the entire figment disappeared in a blink of the eye. The game that was played only took a second, all of that did, so Eiji didn't notice.

"I guess I can," said Ryoma in a daze.

"Oh great!" Eiji pulled out a red wagon that had been hidden behind him. "Every morning, to get to school faster, I ride this down the large hill by my house. It's fun to go up and down on it. I was thinking we could do that for a little while. Oishi thought it was fun so I'm sure you will too!"

Correction, this is the most stupid thing he has been dragged into doing after school. Echizen was starting to feel sorry for Oishi. Oh well it couldn't be that bad could it? What's the worse that can happen?

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2 The Cell Phone

Addicted to Dreams here! o.~ Well where else would I be?

A to D- Thank you for everyone who read the story. Thank you so much, to those who read and reviewed!

Angel Ryoma- Yes, you get my thanks too!

A to D- I'm sorry for the not so serious atmosphere in the first chapter, this is under crime and not humor. I need to remember this…

Devil Ryoma- Your writing is a crime in itself…

A to D- I **do not own** Prince of Tennis, if I did the story would be very random.

Devil Ryoma- But she does own us!

A to D- anyone want to buy a figment of imagination? Slightly used. Has a large mouth.

Devil Ryoma- HEY!

Angel Ryoma- Please enjoy chapter two!

**Thanks for Reading!**

The Cell Phone

Okay everyone knows what it's like to go sledding down a hill right? With the wind in your hair, glistening white snow all around you, it's a great feeling right? What's this… not the entire world has for seasons? When did this happen? Oh great now my first paragraph is ruined! For those of you, you know whom you are, who live in a place that never sees snow then I'm sure you can imagine what it's like. Riding down a hill, without snow, in a little red wagon, though the color and size doesn't matter too much, is just as fun.

Ryoma had not liked the idea at first but after riding down the hill once with Eiji he was seeing the game in a whole new light. It wasn't so much of a game as something fun to do. Why call it game? Well it sounded better then saying acting like total idiots that even the neighbor's five year old would be ashamed of. They had already gone down the hill four times and were making their way back up again. They had taken turns on who would carry the wagon back up again this time is was Ryoma.

"Eiji I probably should get going soon it's getting late." Ryoma pointed out.

Eiji looked up into the sky. What he hadn't noticed before was loss of light. Now after seeing that the sky had gone from light blue to an indigo he had to agree. "Sorry Ochibi, time flies when you're having fun. Can we go down one more time though?"

Ryoma thought about it. They were almost to the top of the hill and it would only take a few second to roll down. Eiji would take the wagon back up, and he would then go home. "Okay, just one more time. But hey Eiji can I be in front this time?"

Ryoma hadn't steered even once, which had been fine with him, but now he wanted to try it out. He looked to his side to see Eiji thinking. "I don't see why not!"

When they got to the top Ryoma turned the wagon around so that it was facing the right way. He climbed in first and scooted all the way to the front. Eiji slipped in behind him, making sure to leave one leg out so that they wouldn't roll yet. Ryoma pulled his cap down as far as it could go. On one of the trips down it had fallen off. Once he had carefully gripped the wagon handle he said, "Okay Eiji, I'm ready."

"Here we go," Eiji lifted his foot and crammed it into the wagon.

At first the wagon only rolled a little. As it creped farther down the edge it went faster, then faster. Soon the two tennis players were flying by the seat of their pants. Ryoma turned the handle slightly making them turn more left. Once they were in the middle of the road, which by the way is stupid and dangerous, Ryoma tried to steer more right when a slight problem occurred. The wheels were stuck in place and wouldn't budge!

"Ryoma, we should turn right don't you think? That sidewalk is coming up fast!" Eiji said with slight panic in his voice.

"It won't turn!" Grunted Ryoma as he tried putting weight onto the handle.

"What?" Eiji reached around Ryoma and grabbed the handle. Even with their combined force they couldn't turn the wagon off its path. They hit the sidewalk and started rolling down more with two wheels halfway up the sidewalk's side. The boys were almost falling out. Ryoma, in a last effort to fix the tires he reached below and felt for the problem. Something was stuck in there real well. When he pulled it out he was surprised, it was chewing gum! He tossed the semi sticky, slightly chewed gum away and pulled on the handle. The wagon moved away from the sidewalk after that.

"You did it Ochibi!" Eiji cheered. The celebration ended when the front of the wagon ran into a parked car. The jolt made the two passengers fall backwards. Eiji tried to say something but Ryoma's hair was in his mouth, so all that came out was, "Yhv nhed mhrv phatis! Har yhv hayve?" If anyone could speak, hair in the mouth, then they could tell you what Eiji said was 'you need more practice! Are you okay?'.

Ryoma slowly sat up to see that they had run into a blue van. The sound of a sliding door could be heard. Four people got of the van and took a look at what hit them. They might have been shocked to see two teenagers sitting in a little red wagon if it hadn't been for the fact that they had been watching them the whole time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to hit them. Who knew it was literally? Before Ryoma, or Eiji, could apologize for running into their van, their mouths were covered by some cloth and darkness seemed to be the only thing to great them.

"Hey boss, what should we do with their wagon?" Asked one of the men from the van, he was the driver.

"Leave it." The man who was cloaked in darkness from the setting sun said as if it had been obvious.

"This one had a cell phone, want me to break it?" One of the men who had tied up Ryoma and Eiji now asked as he searched the unconscious twos pockets.

"Leave it." Came the greedy reply.

Tezuka had just finished his homework when he looked at the clock it read 8:12. It was a nasty reminder of how much time he had spent at that family get-together. He hadn't wanted to go in the first place but… oh well there was no point in dwelling in the past. He was about to call it a night when the night air blew in from his open window and drew him to its side. It was beautiful, which wasn't a word he used often. There were more stars out playing in the sky then all the stars in a place called Hollywood. It was brighter then the lights of Tokyo, and much less costly. Ah how the night was like a drug that was easy to get addicted to. The sound of the phone downstairs pulled Tezuka back into reality. That is why he hated going to family get-togethers! It was his cousin, the artist. He was always going off about art and how Mother Nature was the greatest canvas. Whatever his cousin had was contagious!

Tezuka went downstairs and picked up the phone. "Hello Tezuka residence."

"Sorry to call so late Tezuka, this is Nanjiro Echizen, I'm calling about my son." Nanjiro said lazily. He didn't care if Ryoma staid out late but his damn cat kept meowing and he didn't know where the cat food was.

"Ryoma?"

"Yeah that's the one. He hasn't come home yet, I was wondering if you might know where he is?"

Tezuka's phone beeped and a red light flashed indicating he had another call. "No today we didn't have practice so I'm not sure where he went. I'll call around and see what I can find out."

"Yeah, sure, thanks." Nanjiro hang up. He sighed while flopping himself onto the floor, it was going to be a long night.

Tezuka picked up the other call. "Hello Tezu-"

"Tezuka have you seen Eiji?" The panicked voice of Oishi was unmistakable.

"Eiji?" Tezuka repeated. So there were two regulars missing? Maybe they were out late playing a doubles match. Though Ryoma doesn't play doubles…

"Yeah his mother called me asking if he was with me. Today I had a test I needed to take after school and so I'm not sure where Eiji went. What if something happened to him?" Oishi was starting to see worst-case scenarios flash through his mind. "What if he fell down a manhole? Or got hit by a car? What if he got lost?"

"Calm down Oishi." Tezuka commanded. "I just got a call from Ryoma's father, he's missing too, so maybe they're together."

Oishi who had raced out of his house to look for Eiji was now very close to Eiji's house. He had thought the best way to find him would be to follow the rout Eiji takes to get home from school. He stopped in his tracks. "Is that supposed to make me feel better? Now two people are missing?"

"Oishi have you even tried calling Eiji yet?" Tezuka asked after Oishi finished saying how two people missing is worse then one, and that they could both fit down a manhole. Where did he come up with such odd ideas? You had to wonder.

"No I… haven't." Oishi fell silent. He had been so worried that it clouded his better judgment.

"Here I'll call his cell phone, you stay on the other line." Tezuka punched in the number and waited. He heard it ring, twice? Was there an echo, or was it…?

"Tezuka…" Oishi said with a voice that was barely a whisper.

"What is it Oishi?" Tezuka asked.

"I hear Eiji's ring tone…"

To be continued…

A to D- I'm sorry not much happened in this chapter and that it was short.

Devil Ryoma- I'm just sorry I wasn't in it.

A to D- Ryoma and Eiji are missing and that's all you can say?

Devil Ryoma- Mada Mada Dane

A to D- Never mind he's free…! Please just take him!

Devil Ryoma- You can't get rid of me that easily… silly girl.

A to D- Anyways for those who review I'll let you beat up Devil Ryoma! o.~

Devil Ryoma- HEY!

Angel Ryoma- Until next time, happy readings!


	3. Chapter 3 In Trouble

Sorry for taking so long to update! (In my mind a week is too long) I've been very busy. This is my most popular story so far so I thought I should add a chapter. I'm kind of afraid if I do people won't like it anymore… paranoid, maybe.

Thanks for the reviews. They make me want to write more! o.~

**I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint! Enjoy!**

In Trouble

Oishi, the vice-captain, had never asked for much from life. Family, friends, and tennis were all he ever needed, and he had it all. He was blessed. His family was always kind to him, and very understanding. He had lots of friends, a whole tennis team full of them. Some of his friends loved to tease him, saying he was always acting like a mother hen. Maybe he did worry more then the average teenager, but he couldn't help it. He didn't want anything to happen to the balance of his life. His doubles partner, Eiji, was his best friend who always made him laugh. He couldn't imagine going a whole day without seeing him. Now tennis was special, tennis was like air, he needed it. And right now he needed air more then anything, but he needed to see Eiji even more then that. More then family, more then friends, more then tennis, and more then air, he needed to see his doubles partner. Don't get me wrong, he needed air and badly. The moment he heard Eiji's ring tone he forgot how to breathe. His thought process froze, his heart stopped beating.

"Oishi…? Oishi! What did you mean you hear Eiji's ring tone?" Tezuka yelled at the phone even though it was obvious he wasn't going to be heard.

Oishi with his eyes followed the sound of the cell phone. On the ground by a bush in someone's yard it laid there, shacking the blades of grass around it. Beside it, barely visible was the handle of Eiji's wagon. Oishi gasped, which was a good thing because it had been a while cense he stopped breathing. He clumsily stumbled over to the bush. He fell to his knees and pressed the little green button labeled talk. "Tezuka…"

Tezuka was shocked to hear Oishi on the other end. He had called Eiji's cell phone… so did that mean Oishi found Eiji? "Oishi… what is it, what did you find?"

"He's not here," Oishi, said through ragged breaths, he had to get used to breathing again. This time, a little more relived he said, "Neither of them are here. I found Eiji's cell phone and his wagon in a bush by the hill he rides down."

Tezuka thought about this for a moment. "Stay there. I'll call the others to help search for them." Tezuka was about to hang up, but added, "Don't worry Oishi, we'll find them."

After Tezuka hung up Oishi turned off the cell phone. They would find them and everything would be okay. Oishi tried to calm down. It wasn't good to get all worked up, it could make the situation worse. He stayed on his knees and waited for the others.

Tezuka had called everyone and said to meet by the hill, where Oishi was waiting. He gave detailed instructions for those who had no idea where it was. When he had called, Inui was the only one to ask questions. He hadn't answered any, just told him to come. He would have to answer his questions later, but not even the world's famous magician could pull the answers out of his hat. Tezuka left a note saying he had gone out and was out the door before he had fully pulled up his jacket.

It was cool out, not cold, but not welcoming. He lived a ways away from Eiji's. On a normal day it would take about an hour to get there, maybe forty minutes jogging. This occasion, however, was not normal, so Tezuka ran like a pack of hungry wolves was at his heels. As he ran he noticed the ghostly appearance of the houses he ran past. Was it just his imagination or did the place seem dead. Dead. Not a good word to think about, especially with two of the regulars missing. He switched to a sidewalk covered with branches. They were just trimmed that afternoon, probably because they had died and were no longer green. Died. Another word to avoid. Tezuka was almost there. Only one more street left. He passed a house with its porch lights on. A women and a man could be seen arguing in the window.

"Die already you old hag!" The man shouted before stepping out onto the front porch, slamming the door, and taking out a smoke.

Tezuka was out of ear shot by the time the lady yelled back. He had only heard one line from the conversation, but what he heard was enough. Die. Depressing thoughts filled his mind. This was not a time to be thinking of such things. He was starting to notice similarities between himself and Oishi. It scared him and he wanted to shake it off, but just couldn't.

Oishi saw Tezuka as soon as he came into view. The moon highlighted his face and it was apparent he was anxious. Before Oishi could put a sentence together, Tezuka was examining the wagon. The front of the handle was dented, as was the front of the wagon, besides that it was fine.

"Looks like they hit something." Tezuka said after he was through looking at it. Oishi just nodded, his mind numb.

The two didn't have to wait long before Inui, Fuji, Kaidoh, and Momoshiro had joined them. Tezuka had called Taka but he had not been home. They quickly filled everyone in. Inui had his chance to look at the cell phone and the wagon, making sure not to miss any details. Momoshiro started beating himself up about getting in trouble that day, and Kaidoh was fast to offer help. Before a blood battle broke out Fuji said with eyes wide open, "I believe I was last to see Echizen and Eiji."

"You did?" Tezuka asked.

"Saa I ran into them while they were talking about Momoshiro getting in trouble. Just before that I had met Eiji and he said he was going to ask Ryoma to hang out with him because Oishi was busy. That's when I told him about Momo, I would have gone home but I remembered I left something in class after just getting out of the gate and headed back into the school grounds. "

"So they must have gone riding down the hill together. Something happened, they hit a large object, now they're gone." Inui concluded.

"This is all my fault." Oishi moaned, how could he have let this happen?

"No this is my fault for getting caught passing notes in class." Momo groaned.

"That's enough." Tezuka snapped. "We know for a fact they hit something. Let's think about this rationally, what would someone do after getting hit?"

"They could have been hurt, maybe they went to the hospital?" Oishi said with a look of terror on his face. He would have gone running to the hospital if it hadn't been for Momo's idea.

"Maybe they hit a car and were taken to the police because the owner of the car was mad. There might be a law about riding down a road in a wagon." Momo could have been right.

"These are both good ideas, anyone got something else?" Tezuka asked the small group of teens.

"What if after hitting something they were knocked unconscious, and what if a neighbor saw them and tried to help?" Inui voiced his idea. He hadn't known what to expect when he was told to meet at the hill, all he was told was it was an emergency. Now he only wished he had changed out of his pajama bottoms because the night air went right through them.

"Sss… what if they went to buy a new wagon and haven't returned yet?" Kaidoh asked. It wasn't that he cared if anything happened to the two, whatever it was they brought it on themselves. What did matter was that he was stuck outside at night when he could be sleeping.

Everyone looked at Kaidoh with blank stares until Oishi spoke up. "Well remember this is Eiji and Ryoma we're talking about. If Eiji got upset about his wagon Ryoma might have suggested they go buy a new one."

"This is Ryoma," Momo said, "He's not that thoughtful."

"Maybe Eiji was upset then decided to get a new wagon and dragged Ryoma along." Fuji revised. Everyone agreed with a silent nod of the head.

"Seeing as there are lots of possibilities we have to explore as many as we can. There are six of us here so let's split into three groups of two." Tezuka said with decisiveness.

"But you just said we should try out as many as we can!" Momo objected.

"Yes but I'm ruling out the neighbor idea just because it's late and waking up everyone wont help us. If they really are in one of these houses then they would wake up and call home, or they would be entered into a hospital." Tezuka said before turning to Oishi. "Oishi I want you to come with me to check out all the hospitals."

"Sure, that's the more likely place they'll be." Oishi hoped they were there, yet at the same time hoped they weren't. You should never wish for someone to be in the hospital, even if they were missing.

Tezuka turned to Inui, "Inui I want you and Momoshiro to check out the police stations, they might have been taken in for destruction of property."

"Sure thing, we'll get right on it." Momoshiro pulled out his bike. "When should we stop the search?"

Tezuka hadn't thought about it. "When both regulars are found."

"And if none of us can find them?" Asked Inui. The two regulars were sent off into the darkness. Momo on his bike, Inui running, but both were left with the impression of Tezuka's glare. They would find them. There was no other option.

"Shouldn't we call the police?" Asked Fuji once Tezuka had stopped fuming.

"We might have to, but we can't file a missing persons report until they're missing for forty-eight hours." Oishi replied instead.

"Fuji and Kaidoh, I need you two to look in town, search the shopping district. I'm not sure where Eiji got his wagon but all the shops should be closed by now so they would be on the streets." Tezuka gave out the last assignment and gathered Oishi to leave for the nearest hospital.

"Kaidoh I guess we should get going." Fuji said with a smile. He enjoyed the others discomfort.

"Sss." Kaidoh hissed. It was almost worse being stuck with the genius then with Momoshiro, there was just something unsettling about his smile. The two set off, one in high spirits, the other slightly nauseous.

……………………………………….Elsewhere…………………………………….

Eiji's eyes fluttered open. The light in the room was dim and made it hard to see. There was a door that seemed far out of reach. There was a pain in his wrists. It felt like something was cutting off his blood circulation. He tried to pull up his arms to look but found it impossible. He tilted his head to the side to get a good look at his arms behind his back. He hadn't turned his head more then an inch when he saw Ryoma leaning against the wall out cold. His greenish black hair obscured his eyes, but even in the dim light Eiji could tell he was really pale. Maybe he was having a nightmare? Eiji stopped looking at Ryoma long enough to see that they were bound together by their wrists. How had they gotten there? Memories slowly started to spill into him. They had been riding in the wagon when they hit a car. People got out of the car and did something to make him sleepy. Now he was tied up with Ryoma who knows where. Things couldn't get too much worse could they?

"Eiji…?" Ryoma had woken up and began to stir. He went to wipe off the drool on his face when he noticed the change in environment. "Where are we? What's going on…?"

Hollering shouts echoed off the walls and into their room. Earsplitting screams of pain hit them like a tsunami. Once the shouts faded away Eiji said without hesitation. "I think we're in trouble."

**To be continued…**

Sorry if you didn't like this chapter, I just needed it to get the regulars on the path to finding Ryoma and Eiji. If you did like it then please review, and even if you didn't like it a review on why would be appreciated!

If you want to help me with a story, I have a poll going on in my profile for characters you want to be in it. Title- "Stuck in an Elevator with You" Poll ends December 12 (2008 though I think we all know that). Please vote if you have the time!


	4. Chapter 4 Searching for Leads

Hey all you Prince of Tennis fans thanks for sticking around to read the fourth chapter of Little Red Wagon. This is Addicted to Dreams sending out her thanks for all the reviews and support! o.~

What happened previously? - Eiji and Ryoma, after school went riding down a hill in a wagon where they got kidnapped. The remaining regulars, all except Taka, have gathered and split up into twos to look for their missing tennis players.

**Thank you everyone for reading, enjoy!**

Searching for Leads

Team: Fuji – Kaidoh

Fuji and Kaidoh arrived in the shopping district a little after ten. The streets were empty and only the light from the street poles filled the empty void of night. A cloud cover had passed over the sky giving the effect of total darkness. None of the shops were open. No one was crazy enough to go shopping at nighttime anyways. Only trouble was out this late, and the regulars. The two walked on the sidewalk looking into each alleyway, searching every parked car, left by who knows whom, and looked in each window. It was safe to say the place was deserted, they didn't even see a single gangster want to be. Shadows licked at their feet as they crossed the road to look at a tool store.

A slight breeze tossed Fuji's hair playfully. He pushed it back with his hand to no avail, that's when something caught his attention. At the far end of the street a building stood, it slumped a little to the right and looked like it had been around long enough to have been passed down from a couple of different owners. The windows were boarded up with planks and nail, though whoever had done the job did it poorly. The roof in the middle looked caved in, and there were numerous holes in the walls. There was no evident door on the side facing them as far as he could see.

When Kaidoh realized Fuji was still lingering in the middle of the crosswalk he walked back over to join him. He might have commented on how strange he was acting and that being spacey wouldn't help find the two missing regulars but his eyes followed Fuji's, and they too saw what he saw. After they stood there for a few minutes Fuji finally voiced his thoughts, "Saa… that building over there looks suspicious."

"I agree." Kaidoh said. He stuffed his hands into his short's pockets. "We should go check it out."

"There would be no reason for those two to be in there, unless they were…" Fuji grabbed his chin in thought. Something wasn't right. No one had come up with the possibility, but it was so obvious. Had no one wanted to say it before? Had no one wanted to admit that they could have been-

"Abducted." Kaidoh hissed.

"Huh?" Fuji looked at the underclassmen in surprise.

"They wouldn't be in some place like that unless they were kidnapped, though I don't see who would want them." Kaidoh was getting impatient, either they were going to go check the building out or they would continue searching in other places.

"That's what I was thinking," Fuji let his hand drop to his side and he started heading in the direction of the building, "Let's go Kaidoh." Kaidoh sighed and started following. If the two were there in the building then they would be found.

Team: Momoshiro – Inui

The police station smelled of coffee, baked goods, and body odor. Momo and Inui were sitting on metal chairs waiting for the receptionist to come back from her five-minute break so they could ask her if two high school students were taken in that night. They had gone to four other police stations and they had no luck. Inui had a list of places they had to go to. This was their last stop according to the list. Inui looked at his watched and mumbled something. Momo, from lack of sleep or lack of interest didn't hear him so he asked if he could repeat it.

"I said we've already been here for fifteen minutes." Inui said. "When we came in the time was 10:08 and it now reads 10:23."

"What?" Momo looked at the front desk, no one was sitting there still. "Ryoma and Eiji could be in trouble, we don't have time for this!"

Momo stomped up to the desk and started hitting the silver bell. It made an annoying sound that was between a ding and a ping. The continuous hitting of the bell would drive anyone mad, soon a cop came to see what the ruckus was all about. Momo and Inui quickly explained.

"Two high school students you say… yeah we grabbed a pair of kids off the street. They were playing tennis and broke a window. They're stuck here until their parents pay for damage." The cop scratched his head. "I don't know about letting you meet with them, though seeing how worried you are, I think I can make this one exception."

"That's great!" Momo cheerfully followed the cop into the back rooms. Inui followed as well but no before noting the arrangement of the inner corridors of the building. He had never been that far inside a police building before so it would be good to get as much data on it as possible. He may have left his notebook at home but he grabbed a napkin from the doughnut table and a pen from off the desk. Now he was vigorously writing information down.

The cop led them to jail cells. The sound of a tennis ball could be heard bouncing against one of the walls. When they got a good look at who was inside they didn't get the emotions they thought they would. Instead of relief, and happiness they felt annoyed, and frustrated. Inside was not Ryoma or Eiji. Inside was-

"Ah it's Momoshiro and Inui from Seigaku!" A voice gasped.

"Akira and Shinji from Fudomine?" Momo wasn't expecting them.

"… it wasn't my fault… those other guys challenged us… not fair…" Shinji Ibo mumbled from his corner in the cell.

"Why are you here?" Asked Akira after giving his best friend a look that had the words shut up written all over it.

"We are currently looking for Echizen and Kikumaru." Inui said before telling the cop that these weren't who they were looking for.

"So they're missing?" Akira looked like he was thinking of something.

"Yeah, have you seen them?" Momo asked while the cop tugged at his sleeve trying to pull him out of the room. He was grumbling about it being time for them to leave. Inui had already left, feeling his time would be wasted if he stayed any longer.

"…no… but someone might have…" Shinji mumbled.

"Who?" Momo asked. He was now clinging onto the doorframe trying to resist being pulled out.

"The guys we played at the street tennis courts, they let something slip about already taking down two tennis players." Akira said after remembering. "They said one was just a shrimp."

"But I thought you were arrested for breaking a window, how could that happen at the tennis courts?" Momo was barely hanging in the room now.

"Shinji hit the ball and it bounced out of the courts and hit a parked van's window. The people playing us were the owners and the van had an alarm system that automatically called the cops." Akira looked tired, their night sounded just as busy as theirs.

Momo was dragged away finally. He could hear Shinji's voice just over the buzz of activity coming from the room he was now in. "… those guys gave me the creeps… hope Echizen and Kikumaru are okay…"

Momo was given a lecture from the cop before the two were kicked out of the station. Momo was quick to tell Inui what he was told. Inui thought it over and finally came to the conclusion that they should head to the tennis courts to see if they could find the owners of the van with a broken window. They were finally on the trail of the missing regulars.

As an afterthought Momo asked Inui, "What do you think they met when they said 'already taking down two tennis players' does that mean Ryoma and Eiji played doubles together?"

"I highly doubt that." Inui calculated in his head. "There is a zero percent chance that they would go play tennis after crashing in a wagon."

"Oh…" That did make sense, and besides, Ryoma didn't play doubles. They walked in the direction of the tennis courts in silence for awhile until Momo asked, "So what do you think it meant?"

Inui pushed up his glasses because they had been slipping down his nose. "Whatever it meant we're going to find out."

Team: Oishi – Tezuka

Oishi was sitting alone in the park right outside a clinic. The leaves rustled in the breeze and it played a sorrowful song. It was dark out and the lights of the clinic looked inviting but he just couldn't force him self to go in. The moon was lost in the clouds and the whole world seemed darker. The sound of footsteps reached his ears and he brought his head up from his hands.

"Tezuka?" Oishi got up from the bench he had been sitting on and came flocking to the captain.

Tezuka shook his head 'no'.

Oishi nodded in understanding. They had gone to every hospital they could think of, but no Echizen or Kikumaru was registered. Oishi was glad they weren't there, that would have meant they had been hurt, but not finding them left him feeling weak.

Tezuka started walking in a random direction. His team members had been searching for about two hours. If anyone had found something they would have called. With each minute that ticked away he could feel Oishi doing deeper and deeper into despair. He wasn't much better off.

The two walked along the edge of the park, listening to the sounds of night, wrapped up in their own thoughts. Now they might have missed a lead, bypassed it altogether, if it wasn't for that scream. Right when they were about to walk away from the park a woman's scream came from somewhere amongst the trees. Oishi and Tezuka turned around and saw something they had never expected. A woman wearing a white blouse and a black skirt came slowly creeping towards them. One of her heels was broken and she was limping. Besides are eyes that were wide and full of fear she looked fine. Tezuka almost expected Oishi to help the lady but when he looked over at his friend the look on his face was anything but kindness.

What would cause someone so nice and kind to look so angry and so dangerous? Oishi's face was twisted in a look of hatred and agony. Tezuka didn't fully understand until he got a better look at the lady. She was now only a few feet from them. In her hand was a cap, and inside the cap, though very hard to see, was a small clump of reddish orange hair. The lady looked scared though it wasn't because of Oishi.

"I… this…" The lady looked down in her hands, not sure of what she was holding.

"Where did you get that?" Oishi asked through clenched teeth. Tezuka stepped in between the two. It would do no one good if he attacked the lady.

"It was given to me… I… this…" The lady looked about ready to burst into tears. "Please I was given these… there's a…"

"There's a what?" Tezuka asked after it was apparent she wasn't going to say more.

The lady looked over her shoulder. She was nervous and shaking. She finally managed to whisper. "A man…"

None of this was adding up. Oishi was confused but he understood enough to know this lady had nothing to do with Eiji and Ryoma's disappearance. He finally calmed down and asked the lady, "Why were you given those?"

"These…" The lady looked at the cap then held it out for Tezuka to take. He grabbed it with caution. Something was wrong. The lady added in hasted breath. "A man in the park… he told me to give that to you… said there was a message in there for you. Please, he has a-"

The lady never got to finish her sentence, but both regulars could guess what she was going to say. Gun. The sound of a gun being shot rang in their ears as they watched the frightened lady collapse to the ground dead. Blood trickled out from her head and began to form a small puddle. Oishi stood frozen not knowing how to react. It was Tezuka's quick thinking that took them away from the mad man with a gun. They kept running until their lungs hurt and until their legs could no longer hold them. They finally stopped and sat down on the sidewalk wherever they were. Once they started breathing normally Tezuka called the police on his cell phone and reported the murder.

Tezuka shut the phone and looked over at Oishi who was holding onto the cap like it was the most precious thing in the world. "What is the message?"

"What?" Oishi looked up at Tezuka as if just realizing he was there.

"The lady said the man said there was a message in there,"

Oishi looked in the cap. Sure enough a small piece of white paper was sticking out of the strands of hair. He pulled it out and unfolded it. He read it out loud. "Captain Tezuka of the Seigaku tennis team, we have your teammates. You hold the key to their fates. We know who you are, but you don't know us. Don't call the police don't make a fuss. Do as we say and everything will be fine. You're about to help us pull off a crime. P.S Just so you know we mean all this we're going to take away your genius."

………………………………Elsewhere………………………

Eiji and Ryoma had been sitting alone in the room for what seemed like hours, and for all they knew it was. Off and on yelling and crying reached their ears but they never knew what was making the sound. No one ever came to see them. The door was never opened. They just sat there with their wrists hurting and their mouths craving water. The room was stuffy. They could have also gone for some fresh air. Ryoma kept falling asleep, which left Eiji a lot of time to think. Most of the time he was thinking about playing tennis with Oishi. Other times he thought of his room, which he missed, and how he wished he could brush his teeth with his favorite toothpaste. He was about to fall asleep for the first time after waking up but he heard voices outside the room.

"Can you believe how far the boss will go?" Came a gruff man's voice.

"No, he's a very greedy man, but that greed of his is what helped him get this far." It was a women's voice.

"Well I'm just glad I'm on his side." The man said while laughing.

"The plan he's come up with is genius, using kids to make us cash by using their talents." Another man with a scratchy voice said.

"Speaking of geniuses…" The female said, her voice getting farther away. "Has he given Rick the okay to go through with his plan?"

"Yeah which is surprising, I thought the boss said two captives was enough." The gruff voiced man said.

Eiji could just hear the last thing the scratchy voiced man said. "He said the more motivation for Tezuka the better."

Eiji tried to make sense of what he just heard. There was someone in charge who wanted to use kids to make cash… did he mean the Seigaku tennis team! What did he mean by make cash? Steal? Or did they mean something else…? Eiji shook all negative thoughts from his head for the moment. They had also said something else. Someone else was getting taken! Genius… Fuji! Eiji gasped which woke up Ryoma.

"What's wrong Eiji?" Ryoma looked at him in concern. He had gotten more considerate and aware of Eiji's feelings after hanging around him all afternoon.

"I just over heard some people talking. It sounds like Fuji is going to be kidnapped like us!" Eiji tugged at the ropes binding them. "We have to do something."

Ryoma also tried to loosen the ropes but it didn't seem to be working. He finally gave up and asked. "Why are they kidnapping Fuji?"

"I think the whole tennis team is involved." Eiji sighed. "I heard them saying that they were planning to use kids to make cash by using their talents."

"Do they want to use our tennis team for gambling?" Asked Ryoma. Of course when he thinks of talents he thinks of tennis. Eiji on the other hand didn't think like that. If they wanted a tennis team they could have taken anyone. It had to be something else…

"Fuji can handle himself." Ryoma stated.

"Yeah you're right, I'm sure he'll be fine." Eiji knew Fuji was cunning but these were very bad people and it sounded like they would do anything to get what they wanted. If it's Fuji though… he might have a chance.

To be continued…

I didn't notice tell after I typed it but the message in the hair kind of rhymed. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Reviews are nice and thoughtful. I would like to say thanks for everyone who has voted in my poll so far! This had been Addicted to Dreams giving you another chapter to my twisted crime and romance story. Have a good day! o.~


	5. Chapter 5 Open Window

Okay everyone, I know I haven't posted in a long time, but I'm not going to ask for your forgiveness. We're all aware that shit happens and sometimes life is more important than fan fiction… yeah right! This place is my life! Anyways if you want to know why I left you hanging, my PC in my room broke (My life was on that thing. Stories that were not just fanfic but original ones. Pictures, ones I saved and pictures off a camera. And so many other things!) so I was very sad. Not only that but the only other PC I own is in the living room, and it's harder to think when family has the TV turned up and when I have internet so I can go to to listen to music (also I now have to work on Microsoft Works ;.; I like word better!). Have you ever tried writing when you're singing? It's hard for me… Anyways, this isn't a long chapter but the fact that I'm posting means I'm posting again, so be happy!

Oh, and one more thing before I get on with this chapter. If your still reading I want you to know I'm writing this story for the readers, if you want something to happen just say so in a comment and there is a 96% chance I'll add it. It wont get added if I can't find a way to fit it in with my plot, and if I do use it, it will happen, it just might be in later chapters. This isn't me asking for ideas, it's me asking, "What would you like to read about?". It can be simple as me having Fuji say, "Yum Yum Yummy." (Not sure why he would…) To having them get lost in a mall. (I could fit something like that into the plot easily.) Now on with the story…!

**Cheers to another chapter! Enjoy!**

The two teens just sat there, staring off into nothingness. Both were tired and both frightened to the point of paleness. It took a moment for Tezuka to register what he had just heard. _Take away your genius. _That could mean other things then what he was thinking of if he thought about it rationally. It could mean they had a way to make him stupid, though he felt stupid for thinking that was what it could mean. Fuji! It had to be about Fuji, the tennis genius. What did they mean take away? Were they going to kidnap Fuji? Kill him? He had to do something! He found, though, it was hard to do something when frozen in place.

Oishi, surprisingly, was the first to move. He pulled out his cell phone from his pants pocket and started dialing. From where Tezuka sat he could hear the ringing and then a female voice sounded. "We're sorry, the number you have dialed-" Oishi hung up.

"Who did you call?" Asked Tezuka who had finally pulled his wits together, all three of them.

"Fuji…" Oishi mumbled. "No luck."

"Try Kaidoh…" Tezuka mumbled.

^^^A Few Minutes Ago^^^

Fuji and Kaidoh had both searched the outside of the building for a door, but no such luck. How could a building not have a door? It was unfathomable. They were, however, lucky to notice a window a few feet above their heads on one of the sides. There was no ladder and no time. The conversation the two had was brief.

Kaidoh was willing to climb up and break the window if it was locked. He didn't think Fuji would be a good choice for a rescue mission, especially if there were obstacles on the inside. There could be people in there, like a whole gang complete with weapons and tacky tattoos. No offense to Fuji, but not only did he look and sometimes act girly but he didn't look like he could put up much of a fight if it came to that. Kaidoh started talking, "I should-"

Unfortunately, for Kaidoh, he was cut off when Fuji said, "Give me a lift up."

"But-" Kaidoh looked at Fuji in horror. There was no way he was planning on going in, oh but from the look on his face he was.

"Kaidoh, you should listen to your Senpai." Fuji calmly looked over at Kaidoh. His azure eyes opened slightly and a Cheshire cat smile plastered on his face.

Kaidoh took back his previous thoughts, he felt sorry for anyone who stood in Fuji's way. Without another thought he got on his hands and knees, careful to avoid the glass shards broken on the ground, and allowed Fuji to step onto his back. The teen was a little heavier then he looked… Kaidoh grunted.

Fuji reached up and with his hands and tried to lift the window. Even though he insisted on being the one to go in, he was scared and nervous. If what they were doing hadn't been important he might have thrown up. It didn't help that a dumpster was only a few feet away reeking of beer and pizza. His shaking hands stopped trying to open the window when he comprehend the fact that it wasn't meant to be lifted but to be slide across. Stupid mistake. He slide the window open and almost fell back when the unmistakable odor of blood hit his face. What died?

Fuji pulled himself up with ease and look below. The room was illuminated by flickering florescent lights which showed a grimy floor littered with parts of rusted machines. The room looked huge but it was hard to tell how big because darkness clung to the edges of it. Finding no way around it, Fuji dropped down. His legs crumpled underneath him as soon as his feet hit the ground. He landed face first on the cement floor. Everything hurt but he managed to pull himself up to a sitting position. He reached inside his pocket to find his cell phone crushed, so much for 'durable'. He felt something slide down his face, with the back of his hand he wiped it off. Blood. His forehead, he assumed, must have been scratched. Only a flesh wound, he chuckled to relax himself. After his laughter faded away he noticed the obvious, there was no noises. It was quite, his breathing was the only thing he heard. Silence was never a good thing. Another thing he became aware of was there was no one there, he was alone, but the lights were on. At the end of the room he saw double doors leading to who knows where, but not to the outside, he was sure of that. If it was a trap, not like anyone was expecting him or anything, there would be no escape. He hadn't even though about how he was going to get out when he jumped down…

Back outside Kaidoh felt his phone vibrate. He pulled it out to see who in the world would be calling him so late at night. Hopefully someone found the two missing idiots so he could go home. The caller was Oishi. He pushed the green talk button and his ear was blasted with the sound of the worried teen. "Kaidoh, what happened? Are you guys okay? Is this even Kaidoh?"

He wasn't sure where all the questions came from but he answered with a simple, "Yeah."

"Where's Fuji?" Tezuka asked now. He must have stolen the phone away, Kaidoh smirked, it seemed all Tezuka ever cared about was Fuji. Then again maybe he only cared about Fuji when Kaidoh just happened to be in the area. "We tried calling him but his phone is not available."

"About that…" Kaidoh began to tell the two captains what was going on.

"Shit!" Tezuka shut the cell phone with more force then needed and jammed it into his pants, forgetting it wasn't his. Fuji was in trouble and he would be damned if he let anything happen to him! Oishi and him both started running in the direction of where Fuji and Kaidoh were located, the exhaustion now replaced with newly gained adrenalin.

……………………Elsewhere……………………

Both captives woke up to the sound of their door opening. The man who now stood in the doorway didn't look too friendly. He wore brown boots covered in mud, jeans with multiple holes, and a black hoodie with a skull on the front. The man looked in his thirties, but was really twenty-six. He smoked. His greasy brown hair was tired back into a pony tail and his dark brown eyes searched the room, his gaze finally falling on the two prisoners. The man smiled, showing his yellow teeth, and said in a gruff voice, "Ah I see you are awake."

Both boys gave an involuntary shiver, and it wasn't because of the cold breeze blowing in from the open door.

**To be continued…**

Sorry I know it was short, slightly rushed, and left you with another cliffhanger. Anyways… next chapter will make up for this one! It will be action packed and full of the unexpected. Ooooo… ~.^

And thank you so much for everyone who has left you a review, add this story to alerts, and added this story to favorites! Your support pulled me from my pit of despair after my PC died. I love you guys! ^^


	6. Chapter 6 The Captives and Their Capture

**Okay so I don't have much to say… Here's a thank to all the readers, the reviewers, the people who have added my story to favorites, and those who have added it to alert. "Thanks guys, you make writing this story more worthwhile and fun!"**

**I have nothing else to add, though next chapter I might have to put out a warning… hmm… who knows? xD**

**Enjoy Chapter 6!**

The Captives and Their Captures

---------Elsewhere---------

Besides the gruff voiced man, there was now a slightly older man with a crop style hair cut in the room. The gruff voiced man, who had been called Ben by the other, pulled out a hunting knife from his belt. The blade reflected what little light was in the room. He briefly admired himself in the blade, then turned to Ryoma and Eiji. "Looks like it's time to get to work."

"Yeah just hurry up," The other guy said. "The boss wanted them immediately, and he's in a bad mood today."

Ben nodded and walked over to the two teenage boys. Eiji, frightened, closed his eyes tightly. If there was going to be any pain, he didn't want to see it coming. Ryoma, however, was curious as to what the knife was for. He didn't have to wonder long because Ben kneeled down and grabbed the rope linking the two captives. He carelessly cut the rope, not bothering to see if he was cutting flesh.

Once their bindings were gone Ryoma began to rub his wrists, they were red and looked blistered. He didn't have time to come up with an escape plan because as soon as the man put away his knife he roughly grabbed his arm, jerking his into a standing position. Ryoma was so short compared to Ben, so the man had no difficulty dragging him.

Ryoma struggled in the man's grasp, he was almost to the door when he found his voice. "Let go of me!"

Ben stopped, the kid had sounded so confident, where did his internal strength come from? Oh well, wouldn't matter in a few minutes. "Look kid, I'm calling the shots, not you."

"That's what you say, but I think your boss might think otherwise. Quite pathetic if you ask me, I know I would never be someone's lap dog." Ryoma said with a well known smirk on his face. Even when facing impending danger the kid was cocky.

Eiji hadn't been forgotten. The other man had been quick to grab him too after the rope came off, now he burst out laughing. "Bull's-eye! He knows the situation already Benny."

"Shut up, and don't call me Benny!" Ben hissed through clenched teeth. Now he was pissed, and this kid was really bugging him. "You're about to find out why people fear him into submission."

Ryoma tried to shrug but it was a little difficult with one arm being held. The two groups made there way through a labyrinth of tunnels. Ryoma figured even if they had escaped, he and Eiji would have been terribly lost. The tunnel they were currently in had no side tunnels, it was now a straight shot to their destination, wherever that may be. Ryoma allowed his mind to drift off, no point in paying attention all he was doing was being dragged. They were wasting valuable time right now. He could be doing something like tennis, or playing videos games, tennis ones, and he could be on msn messenger talking with Momoshiro. That idiot, it was all his fault he was in this mess. If Momo hadn't gotten in trouble, Ryoma would have never went with Eiji, and this wouldn't be happening to him.

Eiji was nervous and was having a hard time walking. His feet kept getting tangled together. Finally it got to the point where the man holding him lost his patience and just lifted Eiji up over his shoulder. Eiji wasn't as small as Ryoma, so he was surprised by the action, and was slightly shocked because it happened very quickly. The man began to grumble. "And you guys play tennis? Dang kid you can hardly walk."

"You know that we play tennis?" Questioned Ryoma who no longer felt anxious. The two guys were just someone's henchmen, they were nothing to get working up about. "Wait don't tell me, your boss is a huge fan of ours and he wants an autograph? Well you can tell him that he has to go through my fan club before any transactions can occur."

"You have your own fan club?" Ben asked, he wasn't very good with the ladies.

"Jealous?" Asked Ryoma, but before Ben could let out his rage on the kid because in fact he was, Ryoma added with a very serious voice. "I wouldn't be if I were you. They are very annoying with their squeals and shrieks. You can never get alone time with anyone…"

"We're here," Ben announced. "And hey kid, don't worry, I have a feeling you'll never see that annoying club of yours again."

Ben opened the door at the end of the tunnel and walked them into a room full of couches and tables. Different objects were scattered on the table tops. They varied from paperwork to refreshments to guns. It looked like some rich guys lounge room, because there was no way a women would have gone with that color scheme. Eiji hadn't been expecting that. He was thinking they would be lead to a room with cement walls with a table and a chair, like an interrogation room. Now he was confused. He was let back down on his feet and his arm was no longer being held onto, it was the same with Ryoma.

"Finally, what took you two so long?" A deep voice sounded to their left, all heads turned. There, standing in a open doorway, was a very tall plump figure. He had thinning blond hair, blue beady eyes, and large hands. His attire was what made him stand out. He was wearing a leopard spotted bathrobe. Yes, that was it. The man waddled over to stand in front of the assembled group. He looked at Eiji first, noticing his bright hair, then turned to Ryoma who was glaring.

"You're afraid of this?" Ryoma asked.

"This?" The large man sounded amused. And licked his lips while talking, "You're mistaken. I'm no object, but you on the other hand…"

"You were right, there is reason to be afraid," Ryoma folded his arms across his chest. "I feel the same way about my science teacher. Never knowing if they're undressing you with their eyes, if they're plotting to get into your pants. I mean, having a creepy gay guy as your boss would freak anyone out. Don't feel bad Benny boy."

"A lot of words for a little boy," The man mused. "You know Ben, Rick, we only need one boy for bait to lure in the real money makers. You can take the redhead to the appointed place while I deal with this trouble maker."

"Pedophile," Said Ryoma, then thinking it was now or never because they all seemed taken aback by what he just said, lunged towards the table with the guns spread out on it. When they saw what was happening they tried to stop him. He was faster then the three men though, he was an athlete after all, and reached a revolver before the others had even gotten two feet. Now that he had the gun it was silly, but he wasn't really sure what to do. He had never shot a gun before, but if the situation called for it…

"And what do you plan to do with that?" The fat man asked, he didn't seemed panicked, almost as if he knew something Ryoma didn't.

"Ryoma!" Eiji tried to walk over to where his Ochibi was trying to figure out who to point the gun at, finally deciding on the boss.

Before Eiji could get away, the man, Rick, pulled him back. Ryoma noticed this, "Let him go."

"Don't Rick, you need to take that one to the meeting place. Don't want to keep our money makers waiting." Rick nodded and before Eiji could get a syllable out he was dragged off. Now there were only three people in the room.

"Okay Ben, grab him." Ben charged Ryoma, and without hesitating he pulled the trigger. Click. He pulled it again. Click. No bullets. Ben was upon him before he could reach for another gun. Now, with both arms pulled behind his back, Ryoma watched the fat man get closer to the point of his personal bubble being invaded.

"That was cute and all but now it's time for some real entertainment." The man grabbed Ryoma's chin with one hand and stroked his face with the other. The skin was so soft if he hadn't known better he might have thought he was touching a girl. Ryoma jerked his head back in disgust. No one was allowed to touch him like that! Not this man, not the fan girls, not even his mom. The only ones who could was Momo and Karupin who liked to sleep with him, the cat, not Momo! Ryoma felt slightly embarrassed at his though process but tried to not let it show. The man just stood there staring at him with a greedy look in his eyes.

"I think you're mistaken yet again. I'm not into little boys sexually, I get more pleasure from seeing people bleed. Screams turn me on more then moans ever will." The man pulled a small black suitcase from under one of the couches' cushions. He opened it up and pulled out a large needle. The color inside was a neon green, that couldn't be good. "Don't move, this wont hurt a bit…"

'Momoshiro, where are you?' Ryoma cried out in his mind.

**To be continued…**

**Well another short one, sorry! =P Well, not really… *evil laugh* Yeah, review with comment if you can! I can't improve if you don't tell me what I did wrong. ^^ **

**See you in the next chapter where we find out what's going on with Fuji, and the others!**


	7. Chapter 7 A Losing Battle

**Here's another chapter. I don't really have much to say. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! ^w^**

**Be happy, here's A Losing Battle. **

A Losing Battle

……Elsewhere……

"I think you're mistaken yet again. I'm not into little boys sexually, I get more pleasure from seeing people bleed. Screams turn me on more then moans ever will." The man pulled a small black suitcase from under one of the couches' cushions. He opened it up and pulled out a large needle. The color inside was a neon green, that couldn't be good. "Don't move, this wont hurt a bit…"

'Momoshiro, where are you?' Ryoma cried out in his mind. He tried to pull free from Ben, but the other guy had a death grip on him.

"Don't struggle, it'll only hurt more." The man grabbed Ryoma's arm and was about to jab him with the needle when he said in a more pleasant voice then before, "How rude of me, I forgot to introduce myself!"

He was just playing around with Ryoma. Ryoma hated listening to this guy. The man placed the tip of the needle on Ryoma's skin. "My name is Gradin"

Gradin shoved the needle into Ryoma's arm and the first thing to come out of his mouth was a bloodcurdling scream. It hurt! The needle had been so long looking, and now the entire thing was inside of him. Both men were laughing. They had one hell of a sick humor. Finally Gradin stopped shooting out spit, and stopped to wipe his mouth with his sleeve. Ryoma's body began to feel numb and the edges of his vision was becoming blurry. Gradin smiled. "That, my friend, was a new animal tranquilizer straight from America! I gave you enough to put you to sleep, and when you wake up…"

Gradin didn't finish the thought, he left it for Ryoma's imagination, which within the last day had gone from simple tennis to thoughts filled with new and chilling ideas.

…. Not Elsewhere….

Now that Fuji was inside, he thought it would be a waste if he didn't explore it. He picked himself up, brushing off the pain, and started towards the double doors. With the stench of blood so heavy in the air he was amazed that the whole place wasn't painted in blood. He pulled on the metal handle and found it wasn't locked, there went his wishful thinking. The first thing that he noticed was the instant drop in temperature. It was bitter cold. He let out his breath and it appears before him in a puff of white. Goosebumps covered his now shaking body. The lights were also on in the room, but unlike the others, these were mounted on the wall. The lights showed that the walls were covered in a sheet of frost.

"What a strange place," Fuji mused. He debated whether or not he should even go in, but then he thought if Ryoma and Eiji were in there he would never forgive himself if he left. He started walking down the long corridor, his footprints leaving light impressions on the floor. He walked into an open space and got a good idea of the kind of place he was in. Either hell, or a slaughterhouse. Hooks were suspended in the air by chains. Newly added slabs of meat were dripping meaty juices onto the floor. Fuji was in a freezer. A freezer full of dead animals. He ate meat, he had no qualms about killing animals for food, however he did have a problem with being inside the place they do the killing.

Loosing all nerve he had gained, he turned and ran back to where the double doors were. He grabbed the handle and pulled but all that accomplished was his elbow popping. The door was locked now! Fuji looked out of one of the glass window on the side of the door. How could this have happened? A grubby face all of a sudden appeared parallel to his. He jerked his head back, letting a yelp of surprise escape his lips. The man on the other side was smiling, his smile missing all but a few teeth.

Fuji banged on the door. "Hey, let me out of here!"

The man wrestled with something in his pocket, then brought his hand back, revealing a gun. Fuji quickly knelt down, hugging the door so the man couldn't see him through the glass any longer.

Kaidoh outside had just been joined by two very distressed people who looked a lot like his Captains. Oishi was holding onto a cap that looked a lot like Ryoma's, and Tezuka was out of breath but already giving out orders. "Kaidoh I need help getting up to that window."

"…" Tezuka was a lot bigger then Fuji, there was just no way.

"Look I don't need you to hold my weight, I just need you as a stepping stone." Tezuka pressed farther.

Just then the clear cut sound of a gun shot pierced the air. Fuji!

"Kaidoh!" Tezuka yelled, but the teen was already on his hands and knees under the window. Tezuka looked at Oishi who gave a nod of encouragement, then sprinted towards Kaidoh. His left foot hit Kaidoh's back, the other pushed off the wall and propelled Tezuka through the window. He saw the ground coming quicker then he anticipated. He prepared himself and hit the ground. He managed to stay on the balls of his feet. He could smell blood and the image of Fuji's body drenched in blood popped into his head. Was he too late?

Fuji's hands covered his ears as a shot rang through the silence. He waited for the glass to shatter above him, but it didn't. Maybe the man was trying to help him and had shot the doorknob. Fuji lifted his head, his brown hair cascading to the sides. He reached up and tried the doorknob, still didn't budge. Was the guy waiting for him to come into the line of view? Fuji carefully stood up, staying in the middle of the two windows, and from the corner of his eye looked out. The man wasn't close to the window like he had been before, but that didn't mean he wasn't out there still.

He couldn't just hide in fear waiting for the guy to leave, it was too cold for that, so Fuji stepped in front of the window. He gasped. Laying in a pool of blood in front of the door was the man. He had a self-inflicted bullet wound in the side of his head, some of his brains were splattered on the wall beside him.

"But he was the only one here who could open the door," Fuji was trembling from the cold, the pain in his body, and his growing awareness that he might not get out of this frozen trap alive. He slid back down to the floor in defeat. The only other person who knew where he was there was Kaidoh, and he was stuck outside. Fuji wrapped his arms around his shaking legs, the prospects of him getting out of this alive were looking slime to none.

-A few seconds before-

-Momoshiro and Inui-

Momoshiro was still wheeling his bike at his side when they reached the tennis courts. The place was disserted. There were no cars. Momo sat down, he was tired and it was beginning to take toll on him. Inui inspected the surrounding area. He came back a few minutes later and said, "This was not all a waste. There were glass shards in one of the parking spaces."

"So there had been a van, but now what?" Momo asked, looking down at his shoes. "I'm really worried about Eiji and Ryoma. Eiji's so carefree and Ryoma, well he acts tough but really he's just like everyone else, he has fears and he even gets scared sometimes."

Inui looked at Momo, surprised by the way he was talking. He was about to say something, like the percentage of how likely it is that Ryoma and Eiji are just fine, when the screech of tires on asphalt stopped him. In the fading nightlight, because morning was only a few hours away by now, a blue van was seen. It was driving at a rapid speed and passed them. Momo didn't know what to think, but Inui grabbed the younger's bike and hopped on. He started pedaling. It had been years ago that he last rode a bike, but that didn't stop him from going at top speed.

"Inui!" Momo jumped up. Inui was chasing the van! Momo started running after them, but he wouldn't be able to catch up.

The man driving the van suddenly stopped and went into full reverse. The two in the back flung open the doors and lowered a ramp. It had been so sudden that Inui hadn't seen it coming. He rode up the ramp and into the back of the van where he was jumped and flung to the floor. The driver checked their review mirror, Momo was still chasing after them. He sped off forward now, leaving the teen in his dust.

The lady sitting beside the driver let out a soft laugh, "It's like taking candy from a baby. Now that we have their genius they wont be able to figure out a way around our 'offer'."

Momo's lungs felt about really to burst. It had all happened too fast. Inui had been swiped off the road and now he was gone. Gone like Eiji and Ryoma. Momo balled his hands into fists. "You bastards!"

His yelling echoed off the emptiness that surrounded him. He planned on not being alone for long. These people had taken his friends, his bike, and more importantly Ryoma. They were about to learn payback was a bitch, because Momo wouldn't rest until he found them. Little did he know he wouldn't have to look for long, they would come to him and the others soon enough.

-Eiji-

Eiji had been blindfolded, tied up again, and stuff into the back of another vehicle. The guy, Rick, had said they were going on a little ride. Eiji was worried about Ryoma. Poor Ochibi! Other people got in, one of them the women Eiji had heard from before. The car started up and they sped out of their parking. He couldn't see but he could smell a flower fragrance which he could almost taste because whoever had used it used too much. He could hear people in the very back talking, but no words could be made out.

Then all of a sudden they went speeding back, and something entered the back of the van. He wasn't sure what was going on. The lady began to laugh then said, "It's like taking candy from a baby. Now that we have their genius they wont be able to figure out a way around our 'offer'."

Fuji was with them now? What was going on? Eiji tried to get his blindfold off but couldn't even get a finger to his face. Whatever was going to happen he was going in blind.

….Elsewhere….

Ryoma woke up on a table in a different room then the one he had been in before. His body felt stiff and it wasn't responding to him very well which was frustrating. His limbs were strapped down by leather bands on the table which were cutting into him a little. The room was empty, Gradin wasn't there, neither was Ben. On a table stand beside the table was a large tray, and in that tray was a whole arsenal. He though miserably that things couldn't be any worse, but oh they could be.

**To be continued…**

**Another short chapter and I kept jumping around from person to person, sorry! I needed you to see what was happening to everyone. Next chapter is going to be called Pins and Needles and will be mostly about what's happening to Ryoma… It will be more graphic then my other chapters. I'm going to make it so if you don't want to read about Ryoma being tormented, you can just skip reading that whole chapter, and you wont have missed any part of the plot. The next chapter might be shorter then all the others because it's just on one scene, but I plan to make it detailed. **

**Anyways, thanks for ready! Tell me what you think. Liked it? Hated it? Your opinion matters to me! ^^ See you in the next chapter, or not if you choose to skip it!**


	8. Chapter 8 Pins and Needles

**Okay here it is, the chapter where I'm really mean to Ryoma! I thought it over and because this story has a really long way to go, I'm not going to break Ryoma's sanity. Maybe just make him bleed a little here and there, a few screams of agonizing pain, and of course the possibility of messing with the kids brain to the point of it looking like a puddle of goop… **

**Sorry about it taking awhile to get this chapter out. I have finals in school and so I didn't have time to work on it and I didn't want to rush this chapter of all chapters! **

**Some things you need to know for this chapter, if you ignored everything else it's fine, but this please read: This chapter lingers on a higher T rating. This has no real sexual content, just pain and suffering and I don't want to make anyone sad and or give thoughts to people. People might be disappointed that it's not that much suffering, I can't do too much though, need to save it for later chapters. I mean we're just getting started! This chapter is slightly shorter then other because I do not want people to feel bad for skipping it. Any important information will be repeated in chapter 9. Enjoy you fellow sadistic and warped minded people! ^^**

**(Like I said this may be lacking what you wanted, but if I were to do more now Ryoma would be too much of an empty shell later.)**

Pins and Needles

Gradin was out in the hallway on the phone. He was now, thankfully, fully dressed in a black striped business suit. He though stripes looked slimming on him, they didn't. He had just picked up the phone on the first ring, shows how egger he was, and said in a very polite voice, "Hello?" Gradin listen to what the person on the other end was saying intently. "As a matter of fact I did."

He waited again. "No really I did."

Now he was getting angry, but kept it out of his voice. "Do you have no faith in me?"

He frowned, he hadn't been expecting a honest answer.

"Tomorrow night," Gradin sighed, "I know I've been here for two weeks, but tonight everything has changed."

He laughed, "All eight of them!"

"What? Nine?" He turned a color paler then white. He moved his mouth away from the phone and cursed. "I'll finish this. We'll be back before your birthday."

He bobbed his head up and down enthusiastically, "Yes, okay!"

Gradin hung up the phone. Shit! When did the tennis club have eight regulars? They didn't, but he was told to get eight people. Who was he missing? Well whoever it was he could just get the brat to talk. Yeah that sounded really fun right about now, he needed something to cheer himself up.

Gradin opened the door to the room he had locked up the kid in. Ben said his name was Ryoma. He looked over at where the boy was strapped to the table. His eyes were closed but Gradin knew he was awake. He could tell by the pace of his breathing, it had quickened since he has stepped in. To fill the silence he said, "How are you Ryoma?"

Ryoma was silent. He tried not to panic but it was a little hard not to when you switch places with the frog from biology. He finally opened his eyes and took a look at his executioner, or at least that's what he looked like when he picked up a box knife off the tray.

"No, it's too soon for this," Gradin flashed a sinister smile at Ryoma, then picked up a single rubber band. "Now this looks more like it."

Ryoma might have laughed if the man's face wasn't dead serious.

"So Ryoma, tell me, who's all on your tennis team that has been or is a regular?" Gradin came over to Ryoma's side. He placed the rubber band on Ryoma's exposed skin and pulled it back. Ryoma didn't say anything. If he told him more of his friends and teammates could get captured and that was the last thing he wanted. When he didn't answer Gradin released the rubber band.

_Snap! _

"Ow!" Ryoma yelled. That tiny thing hurt more then he thought it would. Gradin's smile grew larger and more sickening if that was even possible.

"Will you tell me now?" He already knew the answer but Gradin decided it was fun to ask. Ryoma clenched his teeth shut. He wouldn't let a little pain in his arm make him rat out his friend's names. Gradin, not moving a centimeter from where he first snapped the band, pulled back and let go.

_Snap! _Okay that hurt! Ryoma could feel his skin tingle.

_Snap! _Ryoma wanted to scream out but held back.

_Snap! _Ryoma's skin was starting to burn.

_Snap! _Ryoma looked over at his arm. It was red and a welt was beginning to form.

_Snap! _The wound started to bleed a little. Small droplets of blood oozed out. Gradin noticed the beads of red and moved a few inches down Ryoma's arm and started the whole process all over again. He asked before he started, "Want to give up the names yet?"

_Snap! _Gradin chuckled, "Guess not."

_Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! _

By the time Gradin found it no longer satisfying to snap Ryoma with a rubber band Ryoma had eight slightly bleeding welts, two on each arm, and two on each leg. He put the band back on the tray and pulled out a pincushion. On it were at least fifty pins, each were topped off with a black head. Ryoma held back a sob that seemed to be bubbling up from somewhere inside his throat. Gradin paused and looked at Ryoma, as if studding his unyielding resistance. He finally walked up to the middle of the table and pulled back Ryoma's shirt which was part of his school uniform.

"Now Ryoma, it's silly to try and hold back your friends name's. I have you know we already know most of them, we know who they are, where they live. All I want is for you to say the name I don't know." Gradin saw Ryoma's momentarily mental shield break. Within that second he saw the fear and hopefulness of the boy, but it quickly disappeared. "Fine, be that way."

Gradin took up a pin between is fingers and lightly placed it on the edge of Ryoma's bellybutton. He held it there trailing it around the hole, then stopped and in one swift moment jabbed it into the skin. First going down then bringing it back up so two parts of the pin were showing.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Ryoma yelled. His lip began to bleed from where he bit down into it, his mouth tasted metallic now and made him feel sicker then he already did. There was no way a normal pin could hurt so much.

"I see you noticed I added a little something to it," Gradin said, enjoying every second of Ryoma squirming around, tugging at the leather straps. Ryoma tried to ask what was going on, but he couldn't get enough air in his lungs to speak.

"It's an acid," Gradin said, answering Ryoma's unasked question. "It'll burn you just a little, but it wont kill you."

That didn't make Ryoma feel any better.

Gradin inserted another pin, this one was also around the bellybutton. Ryoma withered in pain, his body trying to pull away. "Ryoma I need those names!"

Another two pins under the skin. Ryoma couldn't hold it back any longer. His eyes were starting to see spots. This wasn't a tennis game he was playing anymore, he was on a whole other court playing this man's game. Ryoma yelled, "Stop it! Just stop!"

"Going to give me the names?" Gradin asked. "I already know there's a Tezuka, Eiji, Fuji, Inui, Kaidoh, Oishi and Momoshiro."

Upon hearing Momo's name Ryoma tensed up. What was he thinking? He couldn't give up their names. He only forgot one, and that was Taka's. Gradin didn't miss Ryoma's reaction though. He went through the list again, paying extra close attention to Ryoma's eyes. Eyes don't lie, they can't. "I know there's eight of you. There's you, Tezuka, Eiji, Fuji, Inui," Nothing yet, "Kaidoh, Oishi, and a Momoshiro."

There it was! Ryoma seemed to react to the name Momoshiro. That was the power player wasn't it? He smiled a toothy grin, "So Ryoma let's make a deal. You tell me the name I'm missing, and I won't injure Momoshiro."

Ryoma stopped breathing. The pain on his arms, legs, and stomach no longer mattered. In fact he couldn't even feel them, his body was numb from the poison Gradin injected into his ears. Momo. If Ryoma gave in and gave up the last name Gradin would know that he had a weakness. But if he didn't… "You forgot Taka, Takashi Kawamura."

"I did?" Gradin smiled. "Thanks, I'll be sure to tell Momoshiro you said 'Hi'."

"Wait!" Ryoma pulled at his bindings.

"Oh don't worry, this way you can see your friend before I make it so no one will be able to recognize you. Ben will be in later to get you ready to go." Gradin made his way to the door. "Your pain has just begun."

"Go where?" Ryoma asked despite himself. "Why are you doing all of this?"

"Didn't you know?" Gradin looked at Ryoma in surprise. "Welcome to the world of human trafficking."

**To be continued…**

****

**P.S Thanks for reminding me about Oishi, he slipped my mind! ._.**

**Did I say chapter 9, I mean chapter 10. This will need another part to it. xD**

**I haven't even started, so why am I cutting it into two parts? I need to do other things but I want you guys to get an idea of what's to come. I'll let your minds fill in the blanks I've left until I post again. ^w^ You guys rock btw!**


	9. Chapter 9 Sunrise

**Whew, I sure made you wait a while this time! Well that's because last chapter brought up a lot of things, the main one being Human Trafficking. It is something very real and very serious. I'm afraid this is a big part of my plot, but I don't plan on going in depth on the subject. I say that now so don't quote me later in case I change my mind. It has come to my attention that while I'm describing what's happening to Ryoma, our poor Ochibi, I have failed to tell you what's happening to the others. You remember them right? Fuji is locked in a freezer, Tezuka is trying to save him, Kaidoh and Oishi are waiting outside fearing the worse, Inui got captured in the back of the same van Eiji is tied up in, and Momoshiro is determined to save Ryoma. Now Taka's name comes up. So I need to get things rolling again.**

**I too want to know what's going on. So sad to say, though slightly relieved, I think this chapter should get the plot moving. I need things to happen before others do. Sorry if this makes you mad. ^^; **

Chapter 9 Sunrise

Not even the poor lighting in the room could conceal the scene before him. Just a couple of feet away was a body, blood poured out around him. Tezuka covered his nose with the back of his hand. It didn't block out the smell but it sure helped him feel less likely to get sick. This was the second person that laid before him dead in the same night. He didn't need a psychic to tell him that a professional consoler was in his future, either that or a nice game of tennis with Fuji. Fuji. Tezuka, with vigilance, walked over to where the body laid motionless. It wasn't like he was expecting it to rise up like the zombies in Momoshiro's game Resident Evil 4. The gun rested loosely in the man's hand. Suicide, not murder. Tezuka wasn't sure whether to be comforted by the fact the person with a gun was dead, or to be worried that the man with a gun killed himself. Why would someone do that? Maybe he felt guilty for shooting someone else…

Tezuka reached for the handle of the double door at the man's feet. His finger tips had just touched it when something appeared to the side that surprised him. He looked over at the window, at the glass, and at a very pale version of Fuji's face.

Fuji hadn't expected someone to come for him, what with it being near impossible to get inside without help, let alone Tezuka. The sight of the taller, brown haired, glasses wearing, very strict teen made Fuji smile. He watched as Tezuka's face fell as he found the door to be locked. The teen began searching around for something that could help open it. Fuji stood back away from the door. He was freezing but just knowing he would be free of frosty fingers and quivering limbs soon made the wait not as long.

Tezuka found a blowtorch among a pile of screws and scrapes of metal, it looked like someone had been fixing something, but from the looks of it the entire place needed help. He pulled it out and gave it a good shake. This might work. He made his way back to the door and turned the torch on. The blue flames licked out but didn't reach any farther then a few inches. Tezuka brought the flame to the door handle and began to work.

Fuji's wait wasn't long because before he knew it Tezuka was standing in the open doorway of the double doors. Tezuka tossed aside his blowtorch, it had done a good job. "Fuji-"

Tezuka's voice got caught in his throat. Fuji had shortened the distance between the two in the amount of time it took someone to blink. The petite teen reached out for Tezuka, grabbing both sides of his jacket, and buried his face inside. A blanket of warmth washed over him as he inhaled the sent of Tezuka. It was a calming aroma that made the fear and anxiety of the night evaporate completely. Fuji reached his arms inside Tezuka's jacket, a hug that allowed him to steal body heat. He nuzzled his face in the crook of Tezuka's neck. Finally Fuji let out a satisfied sighed against the other's skin, "You're warm."

Tezuka automatically placed a hand on top of Fuji's head, "You would get even warmer if you stepped out of this freezer."

Fuji sighed again, this one full of weariness. He let go of Tezuka and followed him out of the meat freezer. They both stepped passed the dead body, neither looking at it. They walked in a cloud of silence until they got under the open window. Tezuka turned to Fuji, his normal expression back on his face though the teen himself never knew it had been gone. "Fuji, how were you planning on getting out?"

Fuji's eyes were open, they had been for awhile now, and he finally closed them. "I hadn't thought that through."

"I see," Tezuka eyed the distance, then eyed Fuji. "We need to find something we can climb up on."

Tezuka looked around but nothing jumped out as something sturdy enough to hold either of their weight. Fuji shuffled through the room, nothing but broken items. Things were looking unpromising.

"Kaidoh I don't think this is a good idea," Oishi said fidgety from his place on the sidewalk. He had a look of alarm on his face and was sweating bullets. "No, I know for a fact this is a bad idea. Please stop before someone gets hurt, like Fuji and Tezuka."

"Hss," Kaidoh said through the window of a "borrowed" car providentially just sitting there in a parking space. Keys had been in it and no one seemed to be around. Unknown to them though, it was the car of the man currently laying dead on the floor of the slaughter house.

Kaidoh placed his hands firmly on either side of the wheel. He had never driven before, chose to run everywhere, so he was on foreign ground here. He had already turned the car on, that's how he got the window down, now he was waiting for Oishi to do his part. Kaidoh's cell's battery died so he couldn't do it. Oishi sighed and began fishing through his pockets when he remembered something that prohibited him from doing what he needed to, "Kaidoh it's no good. Tezuka has my cell phone."

Well there was no time like the present to act reckless. Kaidoh honked the horn hoping the two inside heard and got the message, or at least the general idea of what was about to happen. He gunned the engine and before Oishi could spout another word of disagreement the car went speeding off, which is a lot to say because there was only a few yards between it and its destination, in the direction of the wall.

Inside Tezuka and Fuji had heard the honking. Thinking about it, not many people were out and about. Before Fuji had time to voice his opinion he was jumped by the very person who had just saved him from a frosty tomb. He and Tezuka slid across the ground, which later would reveal a few scratches and bruises, though it was nothing compared to what would have happened to them if they had been standing there a few seconds later. A red car crashed through the wall, glass shattering everywhere, the foundation crumbling to the ground like rain during a storm or snow in the winter.

Kaidoh's air bag shot out at the moment of contact, the people who built that car sure knew what they were doing. His head was cushioned so his face didn't meet with the steering wheel. Momentarily he kept his eyes closed. The seatbelt he had worn because Oishi insisted, bless his overly worried natured heart, was now cutting into him. He finally pushed back, eyes open, and began the grudging task of getting out of the car.

Oishi watched as the dust particles gathered in the air. His hands were clasped over his mouth in shock. The last thing he wanted was one of his teammates to get hurt in a rescue mission. He finally pulled his hands back and called out, "Kaidoh…? Fuji, Tezuka? Are you guys okay?"

Tezuka's body was draped over Fuji, hands on both sides of the other's head, he didn't move because there was an alarmingly amount of ceiling tiles, glass, and something else piled on his back. A thread of blood trickled down his left arm. His glasses had fallen off, which is very surprising that they hadn't before considering all that had happened, and were crushed beneath a steel pole. Tezuka coughed a few times, trying to clear the dirt and dust out of his lungs.

Fuji looked up through his lashes, bewildered. His tongue was tied in a knot, words no longer made sense in his head, and he was called a genius. How could he be a genius when he couldn't even think straight? Tezuka had not only jumped into an eerie and possibly dangerous building, saved him from freezing to death, pushed him out of the way of a car, but used himself as a shield. All this for him, and yet Fuji couldn't respond. How could he when Tezuka hovered inches above him, face revealing the stinging pain of glass shards on flesh.

Tezuka, feeling Fuji's eyes on his face looked down. Those eyes were haunting. Like the tide of the ocean, Fuji's eyes sucked Tezuka in. It wasn't like some days when he would look at Fuji and get lost in his eyes, trying to ignore the mischievous smile, where he would see only blue. This time there was something else there, something dissimilar. This invader in the Geniuse's eyes had no name, or at least none Tezuka could think of. If Inui was there he might know of a word to call it. It wasn't fear, or confusion, or distress, it was truly nameless. It left a shadowy impression in the pools of blue. Fuji didn't close his eyes, just stared up unblinking.

"Fuji are you alright?" Tezuka asked, attempting to ignore the mesmerizing pull of Fuji's eyes.

Kaidoh had made his way over to the two. Tezuka was cut and bleeding, they were lucky because it could have been worse. Oishi pulled up beside the three, eyes as wide as saucers.

"Kaidoh, you did that?" Tezuka managed to sound calm, in fact not a trace of anger was on his features.

Kaidoh didn't pause before answering, "Yeah."

"We were going to call you to tell you to get back…" Oishi began, "But you have my cell, and Kaidoh's battery died."

"Don't worry about it, from the looks of it there was no way out anyways," Then Tezuka said, face dead serious, "After tonight I think it's safe to say I hate cell phones."

Oishi gave a dry chuckle, "Yeah, me too."

Kaidoh, wordlessly began removing the debris off his coach's back. He was careful, but not every thing could be taken off, like the glass. Tezuka, with the help of Oishi, got to his feet, sending the glass flying off him and onto the floor. Tezuka looked back down at Fuji. "Fuji?"

Kaidoh and Oishi chose that moment to leave the building. They were going to find a pay phone and make a few calls. They had to call everyone's parents, even Ryoma's and Eiji's. The hospital, because Tezuka and Fuji needed to be looked at. They wanted to call the police, but the note said not to, so what choice did they have?

Fuji blinked. He did it a few more times, getting used to the action again. Tezuka seemed to be fine. Either that or he was pretending. Fuji was throwing the idea around in his head when a Tezuka leaned over him, grabbing his attention. "Fuji, are you okay?"

Fuji hesitantly replied, surprised by the sound of his own voice, "I think I am."

Tezuka reached a hand down, the one that wasn't bloody, and helped pull the brunette up to his feet. Fuji, still with eyes open, looked at Tezuka, really looking deep into his eyes. His stare seemed to be searching for something, but when he couldn't find it he asked, "Tezuka, why are you so good to me?"

Tezuka smiled and lead Fuji out of the building, his hand lightly cuffed around Fuji's wrist. As they stepped out the rays of the rising sun kissed their faces but they both refrained form shielding their eyes. Tezuka gave a sideways glance to the other, his eyes adjusting to not seeing through his proscription glasses, and spoke in a soft voice, "Why do you have to ask?"

**To be continued…**

**I wanted to save Fuji and get him out of there already! Finally! ^0^**

**I know there's a few of you dieing to hear about Eiji, and you will, all in good time. Now that I've gotten to writing about the others I'm inspired, and Ryoma will just have to wait for now. *cries* Sorry guys! **

**I have been very sick though so please forgive me for not getting this out sooner, it's hard to type when you keep couching and sneezing your brains out. ^^;**

**Thank you everyone, from the bottom of my heart, for all the kindness you've shown to me and to my story. I love your reviews, and hell I love you guys too! =3**

**Please tell me that didn't sound creepy… **

**Anyways, I'll try to get another chapter out soon!**

**(Again sorry about leaving you hanging on Ryoma, we will get back to him, he just might not get a full chapter to himself again)**


	10. Chapter 10 Seaside Troubles

**Everyone is worried about Eiji, I am too, so here's a chapter that has a little something for everyone! Sorry for the wait.**

**Something you may want to know about this chapter:**

**1.) It's semi short. (Sorry I've been busy with school work!)**

**2.) It's all in first person for the first half. It's like a quick look into everyone's situation. Then for the second half it's 3rd person. (I did this so we get an inside on what they're thinking, also in the cases of Eiji and Inui I don't what people knowing anything that they don't know until they know it...)**

Seaside Troubles

*_*_* First Half *_*_*

--Eiji's pov--

The car finally stopped. I heard the lady in the car curse, she was upset. I don't know if it had anything to do with where we were, or if it involved the phone call she just received. She hadn't said anything, just listened. I've never met a blind person before, Oishi might have, but I haven't. I now know what it's like not being able to see. It's no fun, but also heightens the other senses. I can hear things coming from outside. People shouting back and forth. Others cars pulling beside us. I can also smell better. Gasoline. It was safe for me to assume we were at a gas station. We had been driving for so long, I really needed to get out and stretch. I tried to pull at my bindings again but to no avail. I hope Ochibi is doing better then I am…

--Ryoma's pov--

I wasn't looking forward to Ben coming in, but having Gradin leave was a blessing. That man was a psycho! The burning feeling had long gone and now I was just laying here waiting for the inevitable. I hate waiting. Suddenly I heard the door open and looked up. It wasn't Ben who came in. Instead it was a kid! The kid was holding a glass of water and shaking like a washing machine. Water was splashing out of the cup but the kid didn't seem to notice. He walked right up to my side, hesitant like I would lash out at him. He offered me the cup. I hated to say something, in case I scared him away, but I thought I should make it obvious, "Hey kid, I'm kind of tied up here."

--Inui's pov--

I didn't think this would be how I came into contact with the kidnappers. Strange that they would use a van, it's a typical vehicle for this type of work. If they wanted to be less discreet they should have gone with a car. Though of course they would have to stop to make the transfer and wherever we're going it's in a hurry. We've only stopped two times and it would be a logical guess to say it was for gas. My limbs may be tied up but my brain is free to think this over. From the way they've treated me it doesn't seem like they want anything from me. I wonder why they're doing this? No matter, as long as I'm now in the kidnappers clutches I can get a better insight on what happened to Eiji and Ryoma.

--Tezuka's pov--

I hate being in a hospital. What makes this visit particularly unpleasant is the assembly of people in my room. Kaidoh is still being examined. Word got around he ran a car through a wall. All the parents are here. Everyone looks worried, even Nanjiro seems a little concerned. We've already told them the police can't get drawn into this, that made a few of the mothers burst into tears. We got a hold of Momoshiro and had him come here. Inui's been added to the list of missing people. Why does it keep growing? There's not much we can do at the moment, at least that's what everyone tells us. I want to just wish this could all be some nightmare that I can wake up from, but then I look over at Fuji and catch him staring at me. It's like I said something that made him question whether I'm me because the look he gives me is an analyzing one. When this is all over I hope we can label it a misadventure instead of a tragedy.

--Fuji's pov--

Tezuka's under a lot of pressure. All the parents seem to be addressing him as if Oishi and I aren't here. He keeps looking over at me, I wonder what he's thinking? I guess I'll just smile up at him for now. The doctors wrapped him up in bandages. He'll be okay, but I still feel guilty. I have a few bandages too. I had to tell the doctors about being in a freezer, that was very unpleasant and I didn't want to remember it. I look over at Tezuka again and noticed a new face in the room, Yuta!

I give him the best smile I can and wave at him, "I can never get you to come to my games but you'll come see me in the hospital? Maybe I should visit this place more often…"

"Shusuke!" Yuta pushed through some of the parents. He managed to get to my side, though when he did he looked mad. "What do you think you're doing? Going off and getting hurt! How can I beat you if you can no longer play tennis?"

"I can still play," I lift up my arm to show him. He still looks mad. Did I just make it worse?

"You were being careless! How did this even happen?"

Yumiko chose that moment to cut in, "Yuta now's not the time for this."

Yuta was about to argue back so I decide to tell him, "Let's not cause a scene now, we are in a hospital after all. I got hurt doing special tennis training."

"Yeah right!" Yuta growled. He looked scary when he got mad. I wonder if I would look like that? Note to self, try that at home in a mirror sometime.

"How else do you explain the others here?" I replied calmly. Yuta looked around, guess he hadn't noticed. I try not to laugh as he buys my story. It was better for him not to worry so much.

-- Momoshiro's pov--

I can't believe what happened. Oishi told me everything. The lady who got shot, the hair in the cap, Fuji getting trapped in a freezer, everything. Just yesterday my only worry in the world was the math homework my teacher assigned me. I told then about Inui, they were shocked. Nothing adds up. Yuta came in and the room just got smaller. There's no good food at the hospital so I quietly offered to go out and buy everyone burgers. Oishi thought I might run off to try and find Ryoma on my own, so he tagged along. We walked in silence, just listening to our feet walk us to the closest burger shop.

--Oishi's pov--

Momoshiro is so quiet. He's worried. I'm worried. How can we think of a food at a time like this? Eiji, Ryoma, and now Inui. Who's next? I find myself looking around more. Everyone could be a suspect. I sound paranoid even to myself at the moment. I'm going to need consoling after this. I saw mom at the hospital, I think she worries more then I do. I wonder what it would be like to be a parent. I hope this silence isn't making Momoshiro feel uncomfortable. "Hey Momoshiro, do you have the list of what everyone wanted?"

I see Momoshiro fumble around with the piece of paper. He replied without even looking at me, "Yeah."

The parents didn't ask for anything, they couldn't eat. I wonder what they plan on doing…

--Kaidoh's pov--

Why do I have to go through this? I keep telling them I'm fine!

"Will you please turn around?" The doctor asked me. I turn around trying to ignore the feeling of being stared at. They're having me take a x-ray. I don't need them to though.

"Good, now wait here and I'll go get these looked at." The doctor leaves the room leaving me to wait in this dress. I would never wear a dress, but the hospital gown sure feels like one, not that I know what one feels like. Where is the captain? He should be going through this too, I did almost run over him.

--Takashi's pov--

I have two missed calls. The answering machine says it's from last night. I wonder who it could be? I wait for the message to come. The first message was Tezuka calling, he didn't say why, I'll have to call him back later. The next one was from today, I listen to it, "Hey Kawamura, it's Oishi-"

I listen all the way through. Oishi said they were going to the hospital and that I should stop by. He said it was urgent. I hope nothing happened to Tezuka! I drop what I'm doing to go, which wasn't much, I was just going to start on my homework. Dad's not home right now, he must be out shopping. Whatever is going on I'll find out soon enough.

*_*_* Second Half *_*_*

Rick turned off the engine. Instantly Eiji was covered in a cloak of silence. The man got out of the driver's seat, walked around the car and opened Eiji's door. He roughly pulled the boy out and said in a haughty voice, "Get a good look at this, because it'll be your new home for the next couple of weeks."

The air was the thing Eiji noticed first. It was cool, windy, and smelled of salt. Salty and fishy. The fish smell was so strong it reminded him of Takashi and his father's sushi. That yummy, mouth watering, sushi. There was the eel, the squid, and… Wait fish? It smelled like the sea… His blindfold was ripped off and his assumption was confirmed. There was the ocean. The waves crashed against the rocks and the coast. A giant boat sat in the sea, pillars of smoke rose from it's two chimneys. On it's side in a bright vivid red color were the letters U. S. A. His home for the next few weeks? Eiji swallowed his saliva, he got seasick though!

**To be continued…**

**Not much happened but I like getting in everyone's head even though I'm not very familiar with their personalities. xD **

**I don't know how long it takes to get from where they were to the coast, for the sake of this fictional story, let's ignore that detail. ^^**

**Thanks for all the reviews, you guys are all too nice! ^///^**

**I'll write in the normal 3****rd**** person next time, so in case you didn't like this no worries! ^^ See you then!**


	11. Chapter 11 What Now?

**Sorry for the late updates, I'm trying to multitask my life and it's been very busy! *_***

What Now?

On the walk to his new prison Eiji hadn't seen a soul pass by, which was unusual for such a large ship. He had been led to one of the bedrooms and just left there. After the door slammed shut he heard the distinguishing sound of a lock being turned. The place appeared to be meant for the crew. There were bunk beds with flat mattresses, ratty blankets, and a layer of dust covering everything. The place smelled of stale air and fish. He could hear the sound of the ocean waves licking at the sides of the ship.

"It's a ghost ship!" Eiji listened to his voice get swallowed up in the silence. He walked over to one of the beds and examined it. In relief he sighed out, "Good, no skeletons."

There's not much to do when waiting for something to happen so Eiji plopped himself down on one of the beds, crossed his arms behind his head, and began thinking of a plan.

----

Once everyone was full and a little calmer the question that everyone had been avoiding had to be brought up.

"Okay so what do we do now?" Oishi asked; he was sitting by the window allowing the sun to break through the white curtains of the hospital room.

Coach Ryuzaki, who had gotten there moments ago with her granddaughter Sakuno, stepped into the middle of the crowed of anxious parents. She cleared her throat, "Okay everyone listen up."

Everyone became silent.

"Our tennis team for some reason has been targeted by an unknown enemy. Our kids have been running around all night fighting them, whoever they may be." Ryuzaki turned to the regulars, "You all acted careless and irresponsible! You should be taking care of yourselves and you should have told an adult. When you started off there were only two people missing, now there's three."

"But we were trying-" Momoshiro began.

"Enough," Tezuka warned.

"I think right now it would be best for you to all go home and get some rest. If we can't call the police we'll have to search for them ourselves. You don't have to worry about this, leave it to us." After her little speech the coach, the worried parents, and Nanjiro made their way out into the hall to farther converse on what they should do.

Sakuno, who looked like she had been crying, stayed in the room. She shifted her weight from one foot to another in awkwardness. Everyone seemed off in their own world; focused on something other then each other. She finally broke the silence, "What happened?"

Everyone acted like they hadn't heard her. From the sounds of it her grandmother hadn't told her the details, just that Eiji, Ryoma, and Inui were missing. It was a few more minutes until she asked again, more strength in her voice, "What happened to them?"

"We don't know," Momoshiro said, allowing some of the night's frustration to slip into his voice. He wasn't angry at Sakuno, but it sure looked that way. The small girl flinched but didn't make a motion to leave.

"It just sort of happened," Fuji said in a gentle voice, "We're lacking some details but it appeared that Kikumaru and Echizen were taken while riding down a hill in Kikumaru's wagon."

"Just taken? Why? What for?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out, stupid." Kaido hissed.

"Kaido," Oishi intervened, "Don't take your anger out on Sakuno."

Silence engulfed the room again.

"I know what Coach Ryuzaki said, but just going home would make me feel so helpless." Fuji said thoughtfully, "Are we really just going to sit back and do nothing?"

---

The mattress was hard! Eiji found himself tossing back and forth trying to get comfortable. He finally sat up, "What is with this?"

Eiji felt around the mattress. There were wires in the side and there was so little stuffing that he was feeling the springs underneath. No wonder there seemed to be little crew; who would submit themselves to this?

Eiji saw that part of the wire had poked it's way through the fabric. Out of boredom he pulled it out. It was only a few inches long, it was thin, and it felt cold to the touch. "This might…"

Eiji jumped up, and in his excitement hit his head on the top bunk. "Ouch…"

Holding his head, Eiji made his way to the door. Feeling dubious, he stuffed the wire into the hole of the door and gave his wrist a flick. Nothing. He should have known the wire wouldn't work. He pulled the wire out and tossed it to the ground.

The doorknob to the bedroom began to turn; what strange timing. Eiji backed up and prepared for whatever was coming. When the door swung open it revealed a familiar sight in the doorway. Eiji ran forward and embraced the teen in a hug, "Inui!"

"I thought it might be you Kikumaru. I could hear you from down the hall. Where's Echizen?"

"Not here. We were serrated in some underground structure. Why are you here?" Eiji stepped out into the hall. It was darker then when he had been first taken there. The paint on the walls was peeling off like scabs onto the floor. The wood floors had scratch marks running parallel to each other. It was safe to say this place was a dump. "How did you find me?"

"There appears to be more to these kidnappers then meets the eye." Inui stated as he started down the hall in the direction of the bow of the ship. "I was taken in the same vehicle you were brought here in. I got out of my room using my newest juice on the hinges. I found you only because your voice could be heard through the the walls of the ship. For a steamship such as this, thin wall is not a good sign; it must be fairly old. For your room I only had to flip open the lock."

"You're telling me the juice burned through the hinges of your door?" Eiji watched as Inui smiled and pulled out a bottle with dark greenish purple liquid. The juice was held inside by a rubber stopper. He swished the liquid around and nodded his head to answer the question. Eiji stuck his tongue out in disgust. Had he really expected them to drink that?

The two walked in silence for a few more minutes when Eiji realized something, "Do the others know what happened?"

"They know you two are missing, and by now they know about me." Inui replied. The sound of hurried footstep reached the two teens ears. Inui let out a sigh, "Looks like our absence has been noticed. I was hoping we would have more time then this."

As soon as he had said it they were no longer alone in the hall. A group of men wearing black suits blocked the hall behind them and more were running to join them from the halls that branched off.

"Looks like there's only one way to go!" Eiji and Inui both made a mad dash for the stairs leading to the deck of the ship. Shouts of anger followed them. Without looking back they weaved themselves between the cargo boxes stacked high and soon found themselves lost.

Eiji sat himself down on a stack of lumber, out of breath he managed to puff out, "Did we lose them?"

"I'm not sure," Inui pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "We need to get a better look of the surrounding area. Kikumaru, can you scale these boxes?"

Eiji smiled. He sprang up from his seat and began circling one of the smaller boxes. He pulled himself up onto the top of it without any struggle. He brushed the dirt off his hands and looked down at Inui. "This will be easy!"

Eiji climbed two more boxes and gasped out.

"What is it?" Inui called up.

"You're not going to believe this…"

**To be continued…**

**Sorry for the short chapter! ;.;**

**Note* I know some of us are SUPER worried about poor Ryoma so I promise that he will have a major role in the next chapter! ^^**


	12. Chapter 12 An Old Threat New Enemy

**Thank you so much for the 100 reviews! Each review continues to inspire me to write more on this story and I want you all to know that I have the next 3 chapters planned out. I did research and everything. I have not given up on this story and I have fallen in love with it all over again. Now that summer is here I'll have more time to work on it and my other stories. Thank you everyone! **

Chapter 12 An Old Threat New Enemy

Taka arrived at the hospital out of breath. After pushing past a crowd of people to get through the door he managed to get the information he needed from the main desk and went racing down the hall in an attempt to find the right room. His efforts were not wasted and he finally found the door labeled 120. Not sure of what he would find behind the door he hesitated. After taking a deep breath he opened the door. What he saw he wasn't expecting. The room was empty. Chairs were positioned in places that indicted where people had gathered to talk. There were clear plastic cups placed on every flat surface. The blankets from the bed were in a mess on the floor and the window in the very back of the room was open. There was a soft cough behind him and he turned around quick enough to give himself whiplash. Standing a few feet away was Sakuno. Her shoulders were hunched inward and she wore a guilty expression.

"They're gone." She said. Her voice was barely audible above the low hum of the air conditioning system.

Taka's voice was strained but he managed to ask, "Where did they go?"

Sakuno shrugged, "Didn't say."

"Why did they leave?"

"There was a phone call."

"From who?"

"Don't know. I don't think they did either."

"How did they get out of the hospital without anyone noticing them?" Taka asked.

"That's… that's a long story…"

---

"I don't think we should get anymore evolved in this," Oishi said but his expression told otherwise.

"It would be wise to just go home and forget this ever happened." Fuji agreed as he shared a look with Tezuka.

"So it's settled then?" Asked Kaido.

"So we're just going to leave Echizen, Kikumaru, and Inui to fend for themselves?" Momoshiro asked in outrage. He couldn't believe it! One minute they were all talking about how they wanted to help and now they were just giving up? He couldn't do that. He wouldn't do that! Ryoma and the others needed them. Ryoma… Ryoma needed him.

Fuji's eyes flew open to blue crescent moons and he placed his rather feminine hand over Momoshiro's mouth. Out loud he said, "What other choice do we have?" Then silently he whispered into the other's ear, "We mustn't let curious ears hear of what we are planning."

Momo's voice was muffled but Fuji could understand the question, "And just what are we planning?"

Fuji removed his hand and smiled, "I have an idea."

The next half an hour was spent improving that idea behind a locked door. They asked Sakuno to fetch various supplies, which thankfully was left unnoticed by the hospital staff and soon enough they were ready. Or as ready as they ever would be.

"You know what," Tezuka said while examining himself in a body mirror, "I change my mind, this is a bad idea."

"Saa… come now, you look handsome if not distinguished!" Fuji said playfully while making minor adjustments to his own outfit.

"I have to agree with Fuji, this is a great idea!" Momoshiro exclaimed.

"Yeah, well you're not the one impersonating a doctor…" Tezuka growled. Over his clothes he wore a white lab coat like the one all other doctors were wearing. He had it buttoned up so no one could see the condition his other layers were in. He ran wet fingers through his hair and pushed the loose strands behind his ears. He fixed his glasses so they no longer sat crooked on his nose. When _he _saw himself in the mirror he appeared the same. Hopefully the hospital staff would be convinced.

"We wouldn't have to do this if our parents weren't so set on keeping us safe." Oishi reminded Tezuka.

"Okay, I get why I'm dressed as a doctor, and I can see why you and Momoshiro are going to act like your family to the patient who will be played by Kaido, but for the life of me I can't figure out why Fuji is…" Tezuka paused, his normally stern and unwavering face cracked into something between embarrassment and shock, "…is dressed as a nurse."

It was true. Fuji was wearing white tennis shoes, which fit his petit feet perfectly, and a white nurse's dress. The skirt half ended two inches above the knees and hugged the skin. The top half was short sleeved, had a collar, and had six buttons running on each side of the chest piece. On top of his head was a cloth nurse's hat with the universal red cross sign planted in its center.

"I'm sorry," Sakuno apologized, "It was the only other outfit I could find."

"Fuji does look most like a girl out of all of us," Momoshiro added while he was adjusting the cap Sakuno found for him so he could hide his hair.

"He's also the only one who has shaved legs." Oishi pointed out. Then after a moment to consider what he said he thought it odd that Fuji shaved his legs in the first place.

"I thought I looked rather pretty." Fuji opened his eyes all the way and tilted his head to the side.

"That's not the point." Tezuka said through clenched teeth, his eyes avoided Fuji.

"Does it bother you?" Fuji's lips curled up into his sadistic smile and made a motion of undoing the top button of his collar, "Because I can take it off if it does."

Tezuka immediately stopped his hand with one of his own. His eyes were finally forced to take in the other's attire. Fuji really did look good in the nurse's dress. His azure blue eyes were open in mock innocence. His glossy light pink lips were pressed together in a firm pout. Tezuka looked away quickly not wanting anyone to see the slight but obvious blush rising to his cheeks. He wasn't behaving like his usual self. "Keep it on."

"Well if you insist." Replied Fuji as his eyes dropped to where Tezuka still held his hand.

Just then the phone rang and everyone gave a startled jump. Tezuka took that moment to move and let go of Fuji's hand to pick up the phone, "Hello?"

"Hello Tezuka," A silky smooth voice floated up to Tezuka's ear, "I've been waiting to talk to you for some time now. It's amazing how incapable my henchmen can be so I thought I should take things into my own hands. I'm more then aware that you already know this but I have your teammates, or can I call them your friends?"

"Who the hell are you?" Tezuka breathed through the receiver.

"That's no way to talk to someone who has a gunman aiming at your boyfriend's head." There was malice behind the threat.

Tezuka didn't know what to say… he didn't have a boyfriend… and surely he couldn't be referring to Echizen, Inui, or Kikumaru could he?

"So you mean to say that you don't have claim to that gorgeous creature whose hand you were just caressing?" The man on the other end asked with a lusting tone.

Tezuka's eyes immediately flew to where Fuji was standing, "Don't you dare-"

"Temper now!" The voice warned.

Tezuka didn't say anything for a moment then exhaled, "I'm listening."

"Excellent!" He purred. "If you don't want any unnecessary blood to be shed then I advise you _all _to make your way to the following address."

While Tezuka was on the phone all eyes were on him and not one word was spoken.

"Goodbye for now." The phone went dead.

"We have to get out of here." Tezuka said after he hung up the phone.

"Right." Oishi helped Kaido onto a gurney and covered him with a sheet.

Tezuka opened the door. The hall was clear. He motioned for the others to push the gurney out of the room. In the hall it was easier to move and they set their pace to a quick one.

"Who called?" Fuji asked Tezuka once they were a good ways into the hospital corridor.

"Not sure," Tezuka turned left once they were at the end of the hall. He scanned the area making sure no one was there to question their presence.

"What did they say?" Fuji asked persistently. He knew something was wrong the minute the phone rang. For starts who calls a hospital room? Sure family or friends, but most of them were already at the hospital. When Tezuka had picked up the phone he had gotten more serious then usual which was a clear sign that a storm was coming. Then there was the few words that were passed between the two which didn't make sense with only half the conversation known. Fuji wasn't worried, he hardly ever was, but something had Tezuka shaken even though his outer appearance proved otherwise. Fuji knew Tezuka better then most and he could tell when something was getting under his skin.

Tezuka sighed. There was no point in keeping it a secret. "It was them."

"Them?" Fuji's expression became serious. "The kidnappers?"

"Yeah." They went by a few staff members before he continued. "They want us to meet up with them."

"Really? Did they ask or insist?"

"Insisted." Tezuka confirmed.

"Well that's awfully nice of them, what better way to locate the bad guys then to have them call us?" Fuji paused, "So what's really bothering you?"

"What are you talking about?" Tezuka's face was void of any emotion.

"I don't know… it's just that you seem to be-"

"Just stay close to me." Tezuka warned.

"Oh nurse?" A middle age doctor called from across the room. The doctor was pushing a wheelchair with a young man in it. They all stopped walking and Fuji looked over to where the voice came from. He pointed a finger at himself and asked, "Who me?"

"Yes you." The doctor raised his eyebrow in surprise. The girl must be new, he mused.

"Sorry but he's helping me out at the moment." Tezuka said, then realizing his mistake coughed into his hand and said, "She. She is helping me."

The other doctor, curious, pushed the wheelchair over and spoke politely, "I'm sorry I wasn't aware doctor…?" The man's eyes scanned Tezuka for a nametag. He didn't see any which raised his suspicions. He had never seen this man before.

"It's fine but if you'll-" Tezuka was cut off by a nurse yelling down the hall. "Stop right there!"

"Time to go!" Momoshiro yelled. Everyone jumped into action. Momoshiro jumped onto the gurney and with one leg began to push. Oishi took the lead and began pulling the gurney at top speed. Tezuka ripped off his doctor's coat, which sent buttons flying everywhere, then with a flick of his wrist sent the coat over the other doctor who had made a motion to stop them. They all began to make there way to the front door.

The nurse chancing them ran past the doctor who was struggling to see.

"You know she's probably only chasing after us because we borrowed all this stuff." Oishi deadpanned.

"Who cares?" Momoshiro laughed. He turned his head to look at the nurse attempting to chase after them. The women looked to be in her forties, she had her hair up in buns, and her face was red from anger. "It's a good thing that skirt of hers is slowing her down."

"Speaking of which," Kaido mumbled, "Isn't that Fuji lagging behind?"

They all simultaneously turned their heads to see Fuji struggling to catch up to them. The skirt he was wearing was so tight that when his legs went a certain distance apart from each other it would slide up. When the fabric gathered it made it even harder to run.

Tezuka thought of a quick solution, "You guys go ahead and get out of here we'll catch up to you at the train station."

"If you're sure…" Oishi said nervously before he, Kaido, and Momoshiro purposely crashed the gurney into a wall. When it fell it blocked off one of the adjacent hallways stopping anyone from getting through. The three rapidly made there way through the doors of the hospital, luckily, without being stopped.

Tezuka had turned around and made his way back to Fuji, "Didn't I tell you to stay close?"

"Sorry Tezuka," Fuji's gaze was focused on his skirt that kept riding up, "This wasn't a good idea after all."

"We'll just have to improvise." Tezuka, before he even stopped to consider the consciences of his actions, stopped Fuji long enough to put a hand on his middle back and to swipe a hand at the back of his knees. With Fuji held awkwardly in his arms Tezuka began to run. It was a good thing he had acted when he did because the nurse had caught up.

"Drop that nurse!" It appeared that the real nurse thought Fuji was also a nurse who had been chasing after the thieves.

Tezuka pushed open the door with his shoulder and the two were finally outside.

Tezuka ran like that for a few more minutes making sure to get far enough away from the hospital before deeming it safe enough to put Fuji down.

Fuji was clearly enjoying himself when he spoke, "Aren't you full of surprises today?"

"You were running too slow."

"What about you telling me to stay close to you earlier?"

"You were being targeted."

"By the kidnappers?" Fuji's playful smile evaporated.

"Yeah."

"I see. This is more serious then I thought." Fuji wrapped an arm around one of Tezuka's, "If that's the case I better stay extra close to you."

Tezuka bit back a small protest, "We need to make our way to the train station."

---

When Ben came in it wasn't how Ryoma had expected it to be, then again that had recently became the story of his life. The man simply said that there had been a change of plans and that it was time to leave. That was all Ryoma had been allowed to know before he was drugged into a quiet slumber. Ben picked up the boy and brought him out to the parking lot where a group of men dressed in black were waiting.

"Is that him?" The one that seem in charge questioned Ben.

"Yeah it's him." Ben confirmed.

A man from the group stepped forward, "I'll take him."

Before Ben could say otherwise the boy was taken from his grasp and carried away to the awaiting helicopter.

"I guess I'll be going now," Ben said nervously.

"Tell your boss "hi" for me when you see him in hell." The man shot a single bullet into Ben's forehead and watched in amusement as his body hit the ground. He had already taken care of Gradin. The man had been a blight on the landscape and now he was removed.

To be continued…

**Thanks for reading another chapter of "Little Red Wagon" I hope you enjoyed it! **


	13. Chapter 13 The Game Is Set

**Here is the chapter I promised in some of my replies to your reviews.**

**About this chapter- I feel it skips around a lot but I like the way it turned out. I also noticed that my whole story takes place in the span of 2 days, maybe even less then that if we go by actual hours. I thought that was pretty weird so instead of describing every single thing that happens I'm going to try and get to the main plot/point of this story (believe it or not we're not even close to the climax yet). **

**Sorry this chapter is short, next one will be longer...**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter because I enjoyed writing it!**

The Game Is Set

_The sun was high in the sky, the day no longer young. Life was suddenly like a movie, and they were only spectators. Yeah a movie… if only it was._

**---**

"You're not going to believe this…"

They were everywhere, like ants harvesting the insides of a dead butterfly on the side on the road, people wearing black. In what appeared to be an organized fashion they moved across the harbor. Like an intricate dance they weaved themselves around any obstacle, aware of each person, aware of their surroundings. An army of highly trained professionals. Professional what? Eiji saw not only were the people securing the area they were also transferring the cargo from the ship _they _were on to a small cruise ship docked to their left. This was… this was bigger then them.

"Kikumaru? What is it that you see?" Inui had grown impatient waiting. If there was something wrong he needed to know about it right away.

Eiji jumped down to land just beside the data man. He looked at Inui and with a sense of hopelessness replied, "We're surrounded. I don't think we're sneaking out of here."

"Surrounded? By what?" Inui paused to digest this piece of information. "Could it be the police? I think we are on a private property, either that or this area is suppose to be inaccessible. If they got a phone call of suspicious activity…"

"They're not the police."

Inui paused in mid speculation, "If you're sure?"

"I am."

"In that case we need a new plan." Inui began walking around the stack of boxes.

"Maybe we can jump into the water and swim away from here,"

Inui stopped what he was doing and slowly turned to face Eiji, "That's not a very bad idea."

"Really?" Eiji perked up.

"Yeah, let's find the edge of the boat."

---

Sahar sat draped across his leather sofa admiring himself in the wine glass resting lazily in his palm. His reflection stared back obviously amused. "Akiva, has the two escaped prisoners location been secured?"

A tall figure detached itself from the shadows that clung to the wall and stood attentively in front of his employer. His shaggy black hair shielded his face but he was well known for always wearing a blank expression. "Yes. We are currently monitoring their position."

"Marvelous." Sahar briefly looked away from the red liquid long enough to send a curious glance in his bodyguard's direction, "And the others?"

"The boy, Ryoma Echizen, will be here momentarily by the helicopter you sent. The others are currently making their way by train. They should be here within the hour."

"What about that one with the bipolar personality?" Sahar brushed a strand of red hair from his face and pushed it back behind his ear.

"Well he's also heading in this direction. We left him a few-"

"Clues?"

"Yes, so he could follow the-"

"Trail of breadcrumbs back to me!"

Akiva, used to his master constantly interrupting him so as to guess at what he might say, nodded to confirm the analogy.

"With the cargo all loaded… it is loaded right?"

"No."

"WHAT!?!" Sahar balled his hands into fists smashing the wine glass against his skin. Shards of broken pieces of glass now littered the floor and the cushions of the leather sofa. Blood now mixed with wine. Sahar paused in his outburst to examine his injury. "Now Akiva, look what you've gone and made me do."

"Sorry. I'll go get the first aid kit."

"No." Sahar brought up one of his fingers and ran his tongue along the open cut. "It's only a flesh wound."

"Flesh wounds can still get infected." Akiva chided the young man.

"I hired you to protect me, not to act as my mother!" Sahar snapped.

"Yes master." Akiva allowed a small smile to grace his lifeless lips. His master was very childish. He would do anything in his power to make sure his Master's plan went without error. That he vowed.

---

The train ride was comforting and was a good opportunity to catch up on the sleep they had missed. Getting on it had been hell in itself and none of them ever wanted to repeat the situation again; mostly because they had been extremely tired and everything they did took extra effort. By the time Tezuka and Fuji had caught up with the others they had already bought the needed train tickets. Tezuka had asked Oishi how they knew where they were headed when he was told that there had been another phone call. This time it had been on someone's cell phone and the voice has specifically asked for the vice captain.

Then there was all the staring done. Not only did the group look trashed, tired, and maybe slightly crazy, but then there was Fuji grabbing unneeded attention. It hadn't been his fault. He wasn't trying to stand out, but the more he hid behind Tezuka's arm, which was a sight in itself, the more people seemed to notice the oddly placed nurse. Just image if they had ran into someone they knew. Someone who knew Fuji was indeed a boy. Someone… like his brother…

No one had seen it coming. Out of the blue a familiar voice sounded from the crowd of people waiting to get on their respected train. Once the owner was found it all went downhill from there.

"Aniki?" Yuta's voice sounded strained and his face was twisted from shock, confusion, and disgust.

"Good afternoon Yuta. How are you?" Fuji said in his most cheeriest voice. It was fake though. He was too worried about his good friend Eiji and too worried about the fates of Ryoma and Inui to truly be happy… even though he was latched onto Tezuka's arm…

"What in the world?" Yuta looked around rapidly, "Did I just enter the Twilight Zone?"

"I wish." Momoshiro grumbled.

"Fuji!" Yuta then looked back at his older brother. His eyes slightly bugged out of his head.

"Yes?" Fuji tilted his head to the side in a questioning manner.

"Why are you…? What were you… ?" Yuta gasped for air then with all the drama it called for pointed a finger at his older brother and gasped, "Nurses uniform!"

"You noticed?" Fuji gave a dark chuckle.

"How could I not?"

Oishi, suddenly noting the time, called out, "Our train will be here any minute."

"Where are you going?" Yuta immediately became suspicious.

Fuji turned to Tezuka, "I think it would be best if I talked to my baby brother on my own."

Tezuka nodded in understanding, "Join us when you're done."

The two Fuji brothers waited for everyone to walk out of hearing range before they picked up their conversation once more.

"So where are you going?"

"On a trip."

"Why?"

There was a pause. "It's important."

"Why are you wearing a nurses uniform?"

Another pause. "It was necessary."

"Is this all you're going to tell me?" Yuta was beginning to get angry with the nonchalant answers. Something was defiantly going on!

"Yuta…" Fuji began. His facial expression softened and his eyes opened up enough to show a depth of caring. "I need you to do me a favor. I need you to take care of Yumiko and mother."

"What kind of a request is that? You know I don't live-"

"Please." Fuji turned his back to his brother and began walking away. "I'm going away and I'm not sure for how long. They'll need you."

Yuta was speechless.

"Oh and one more thing." Fuji turned back around with his usual smile on his face, all seriousness gone, "I love you Yuta!"

Yuta was speechless, and embarrassed.

---

There was a constant buzzing noise. It wouldn't go away no matter how much he willed it to.

Ryoma's eyelids slowly retracted. The light at first was blinding. He wanted to crawl into a dark hole, to hide in the shadows forever, or at least cover his eyes with his hand but his body didn't seem to want to move. This had been happening a lot lately. There was still that noise. What was it?

Ryoma began to see shapes and soon those shapes formed into objects. They were familiar things. The sky. It seemed like forever sense he had see the sky. Was it always so blue? Were the clouds always so far out of reach?

Ryoma inwardly groaned. He needed to pull himself together. Lately it felt as if he was losing it… as if slipping away…

"Hey look I think the kid is waking up."

"Do you know how to speak Japanese?"

"No. Why?"

"Well how are we going to tell the kid what's going on? He might freak out on us."

"Good point…"

Ryoma's throat was dry yet he managed to find his voice, "Bakas…"

The copilot turned around in his seat to eye Ryoma, "What did he just say?"

"I don't know… it was in Japanese!" The pilot snapped.

Ryoma could fully understand what they were saying but it was still hard for him to function. His tongue felt weighed down and his mouth slightly numb. There was nothing he could physically do for now he had to wait until the drug wore off for that.

---

"Akiva," Sahar called from his personal bathroom. He was currently residing in the bathtub that overflowed with bubbles, results of his Champaign Bubble Bath. Clumps of bubbles covered his naked body and there was a light aroma of coconuts in the air as he rose from the tub and wrapped a towel around his waist.

"Yes master?" The man stood just outside the door.

"Fetch me my guests it's about time we met face to face." Sahar ran a brush through his wet hair.

"Are you sure that's wise? They'll be very hostile towards you…"

The door opened up and Sahar stuck his head out. His sea green eyes flashed with annoyance, "Well I except that from them. Besides… you'll be there to protect me."

The door was shut and that ended the conversation. Akiva shook his head. His master really was immature.

---

"I change my mind I don't want to jump nyaa!" Eiji looked down at the water below. It looked cold and unwelcoming… and really far down.

"I'm afraid this is the only way off." Inui frowned.

Eiji shook his head. He had to be brave! He looked back down at the water. "What are the chances of this hurting a lot?"

"Well-" Inui began calculating the numbers in his head.

"It won't because you won't be jumping." An ominous shadow fell over Inui and Eiji. The Japanese was rough and had a heavy American accent. Before they could even think of jumping Akiva grabbed their collars and pulled them back a few feet. "My master wishes to see you."

The sounds of a helicopter reached the ears of the occupants of the boat and just out of the corner of their eyes they could see the gates open up to a yellow taxi cab. The pieces were in place now the game could begin.

To Be Continued…

**What do you think? Was this chapter a fail or win?**

**I know you all want to hear about Ryoma and Eiji, hell I do too for that matter, but I had to round up everyone for that to happen. I think next chapter will be the first chapter were all of them are together in the same place. Weird.**

**Just to clear something up… Sahar is THE top dog! He has been the one behind everything so far, though, Gradin may have played a huge role, he was just a pawn which did things that Sahar hadn't approved of. That's why he was eliminated. **

**Another thing: I need to share the love with my other stories so it might be a little while before the next update but I'll try to make it so the next chapter doesn't disappoint! There will be plenty of everyone (Ryoma (which I had previously promised that there would be more of him in this chapter which I failed to do, sorry!) and Eiji especially) in the next chapter. **

**Thank you for reading my story even though it is packed full of errors in grammar and spelling! **

**Reviews are my inspirations, readers are loved, have a good day all! - A to D **


	14. Chapter 14 The Impossible Request

**Thank you for all your lovely reviews! I keep all of them in a special place in my heart, and in a folder on MSN. ^^**

The Impossible Request 

Eiji and Inui were seated on metal chairs that lined three of the walls. The room looked like a dentist's waiting room, minus the out of date magazines. Raviv had left them there so he could go welcome the others. It had only been a few minutes when the door opened again but this time the person behind the door was Ryoma.

"Echizen!" Eiji jumped out of his chair and flung his arms around Ryoma's small frame. He had never been more happy to see him.

"You're squishing me…" Ryoma gasped out. So far he had been treated graciously considering all that had happened. When the helicopter had landed he was given a water bottle which he had emptied on the spot. Then he was brought onto the boat and put in this room. Yeah it had been nice so far. No guns, no shots, and no words passed between him and the people wearing black.

"I missed you so much, and I've been so worried!" Eiji let go of Ryoma. "Are you okay? They didn't hurt you did they? You look horrible!"

The door opened once more.

"Ryoma!" This time it was Momoshiro calling the young tennis prodigy's name. He raced into the room, pushing past Kaido who was all but happy about that. Eiji backed away so he wouldn't be trampled over.

Before Ryoma had time to brace himself for impact he found himself in a tight embrace. All the air in his lungs escaped and just as suddenly air came rushing back in when took in a sharp intake of breath. "Momoshiro…"

"I'm never going to let you go again!" Momoshiro declared. He didn't want something like this to ever happen again.

"…let go of me you idiot!" Ryoma smacked Momoshiro on the back of his head. As touching as it was that Momoshiro was so happy to see him… he needed to breath.

Momoshiro loosened his grip on the smaller but he did not let go. Sooner or later someone would have to pry him off…

After everyone was done watching the amusing scene unfold before them they turned their attention back to reality.

"Inui, Kikumaru, are you guys-" Tezuka began but was cut off when a voice squealed in excitement.

"Oishi!" Eiji yelled happily.

"Kikumaru." Oishi greeted. He was so relieved that everyone seemed okay that he lost all energy he had. It was as if he had been holding his breath up until now.

"Eiji." Eiji corrected before bouncing over to his doubles partner and giving him a hug. "Where have you guys been all night?"

"Looking for you." Kaido growled. He wasn't in a good mood and couldn't see how everyone was happy, but though he would never admit it, he was kind of glad that no one was dead. Kind of.

"You were?" Eiji looked at everyone's faces, except for Momoshiro's who was lost in Ryoma's hair. "You guys are so brave!"

Tezuka took a seat on one of the chairs and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Aren't you even going to ask why Fuji is wearing a nurse's outfit?" Kaido asked after it appeared Inui and Eiji weren't going to say anything.

"No." Eiji said replied without a second thought. "Looks good on him."

"Thank you Kikumaru!" Fuji stood beside his close friend. He gave him a quick look over to make sure he wasn't hurt, because if he was there would be hell to pay, and he would deliver it. His friends were untouchable.

"Don't you think it's odd that he's wearing a dress?" Kaido asked exasperated. How could they act so normal about something that so wasn't?

"At least he's wearing clothes." Tezuka mumbled from his seat.

"Room for one more in here?" A slightly timid voice asked from the doorway.

Everyone simultaneously turned their heads, "Kawamaru!"

"Guys." Taka said with a small smile, but his face quickly became serious. "What is going on?"

"Long story." Oishi supplied.

"Please allow me to explain!" At the front of the room, opposite of where everyone was, a hidden door opened up to reveal Sahar and his escort Akiva. Sahar was wearing a dark red silk turtleneck shirt. The shirt had lengthy black sleeves that only revealed his fingertips. The cuffs were thick, red like the shirt, and had two silver buttons sewn on them. His pants were light gray and long enough that they hid his black boots.

"Please everyone have a seat." Sahar said before sitting down on a leather chair Akiva pulled out for him. Akiva stood obediently at his master's left side.

Everyone hesitated.

"Please?" Sahar tried once more.

"He said please." Fuji shrugged. He sat down beside Tezuka who, like Inui, had already been sitting.

Eiji and Oishi sat down on Fuji's right. Kaido took a seat away from everyone else. Momoshiro, who really wanted to punch Sahar if he was the one that took Ryoma, finally sat down with Ryoma in tow. Taka took a seat by the door.

"Good!" Sahar clapped his hands together. "I would of hated to have Akiva restrain you."

Sahar paused, he took a look around at all the faces. "First off let me introduce myself I am Sahar. Secondly I sincerely apologize! My subordinate, who is no longer with us, decided to so things differently then what I ordered. He was going behind my back…"

Sahar's eyes flashed dangerously at the memory. Treachery was one thing he did not tolerate.

"He wasn't a very pleasant man, as some of you may remember from your encounter with him." Sahar gave a meaningful look in Ryoma and Eiji's direction. "He was planning to sell you to some of his friends who invest in human trafficking."

Everyone who hadn't know about that took on an expression of fear, anger, or complete surprise.

"I'm not sure if this will be any reassurance to you," Sahar gave a sad smile. "But I would never do something so despicable."

No one looked convinced. Sahar had expected as much. It would be a long time, maybe never, before they trusted him.

"Then may I ask," Tezuka was sick of playing games that weren't tennis, "Why are we here?"

"Always one to get to the point, eh Tezuka?" Sahar smiled, his good mood returned. "Yes the reason I have forcibly brought you all here is because I need your skills."

"For what?" Hissed Kaido.

"I was getting to that, you're so impatient!" Sahar stood up the using his arms to strike a dramatic pose said, "I've brought you here because I need you to break into the Fort Knox Gold Vault!"

_To be continued…_

**This was short but I thought I should update. ^^ **

**I'm so sorry I'm a slow writer! **

**Thank you for reading my story. **

**Readers are loved, reviews are my encouragement, see you in the next chapter! - A to D**


	15. Chap 15 Let's Try To Not Kill Each Other

Let's Try To Not Kill Each Other

"Gold Vault…?" Eiji asked.

"Oh." Sahara clapped his hands together. "I suppose being from Japan you wouldn't know what I'm talking about."

Sahar stood up and walked over to his secret door, followed by Akiva. "Then if you would all please follow me?"

No one moved.

Sahar didn't look back.

The room he walked into was rather small. The side walls were covered in bookshelves. The books on them varied. Some held old books, so old their spines were falling apart, the words on the cover no longer legible, and the authors long sense dead. Then there were newer books that were only just released weeks ago. Like their age, their topics varied from history books on wars to scientific books on solar power to law books. On the back wall was a map of the world with red, green, and blue pins pinned into it. There were posters on the ceiling of constellations, moon phases, and bordering the room was a timeline of the world. In the middle of the room was a mahogany desk, behind it a chair covered in red velvet. The desk was filled with pens, pencils, inside one drawer was filled with important documents, and another was labeled miscellaneous. On top of the desk was a Risk board with tiny army figures carefully placed on top of it. On the back of the door was a replica of the Declaration of Independence.

Sahar stood behind his desk admiring his war room. It was his favorite room on the entire ship. Everything in it had been moved from the war room in his house because he refused to go anywhere without it. Akiva who was standing off to the side of the desk quietly whispered, "Sir, they're not coming."

Sahar traced his hand across the woodwork on his desk, "Yeah."

Akiva raised his eyebrow in surprise, "Sir?"

Sahar flopped down in his chair and sighed. He looked at his little troops and frowned. "Maybe I'm asking too much of them…"

This wasn't like Sahar. He never gave up and he never second guessed himself. Without progress you die, that was his motto. Ever sense he was young…

"… maybe they're too inept." Sahar said a little louder.

"What did you say?" A very angry Kaidoh stood in the doorway. He didn't like being though of as incapable, that just pissed him off.

"I said you are unqualified for what I am asking," Sahar casually waved a hand in the air, "I over estimated you guys, gave you more credit then you deserved."

Kaidoh balled his hands into fists. He gave out a low hiss before speaking through his teeth, "What are you talking about? You haven't even explained what you want us to do, how can you judge are capability without evidence?"

"Oh, that's simple." Sahar rested his chin in his hands. "No one made a move to follow me, already you have proven your lack of cooperation and by doing so you do not exceed my expectations."

Kaidoh slammed his hands on the desk. The game board shook and a few of the game pieces fell down into the ocean. Sahar jerked back in surprise, he wasn't expecting such anger. "You stuck up brat! Your people kidnap us, attack us, you bring us out here against our wills, and now you don't think you need us?"

Sahar stared at Kaidoh in horror.

Akiva stepped between the two, "How dare you!"

"Stand down." Sahar ordered. He waited tell Akiva had moved away before standing up and slamming his own fists onto the desk. "Who do you think you are calling me a brat? I have hundreds of men willing to do anything I say. I have warehouses full of firearms, bombs, and artillery. I own planes, helicopters, cars, boats, and there's a few trains that are under my control. I am a very powerful person, I'm a crime lord! "

"You're right, I was wrong." Kaidoh corrected himself. "You're a spoiled brat."

Sahar's jaw dropped. No one ever insulted him before, because they knew they wouldn't live to regret it. No. One.

Sahar walked around his desk and stood facing Kaidoh. Even though Sahar was older, he was fifteen, his head only reached up to the other's mouth. He tilted his head up and his green eyes met black ones. He positioned his eyebrows so his eyes formed a glare and said with venom in his voice, "You're walking on hot coals now."

"Don't you mean thin ice?" Kaidoh asked, knowing full well that he was pissing the young crime lord off even more.

"No," Sahar smiled a sinister smile, "I mean if you keep this up I'll have you walk on hot coals."

"Kaidoh." Oishi called. He and the others had gathered by the door, curious as to what was going on. "You probably shouldn't be provoking him."

"You should listen to your friend," Sahar bobbed his head in Oishi's direction. "He's smarter then you."

"Why you-" Kaidoh was about to do something stupid, like punching Sahar in the face, when Momoshiro grabbed his wrist from behind. "Viper, you're going to cause more trouble then we need!"

"Fshhh!" Kaidoh jerked his hand out of Momo's grasp only to have it come flying forward and hit Sahar in the nose.

All the tennis players stared in horror as the crime lord staggered back and fell against the desk. He used his left hand to support himself and the right to hold his nose. His face was red from anger. When he looked out through his auburn colored bangs his green eyes revealed tears that were the result of the pain.

"Nya, Kaidoh, red heads bruise really easily!" Eiji pushed passed the two trouble makers and placed a hand on Sahar's shoulders. "Are you okay?"

Sahar, who would normally snap at a person for touching him, bit back his anger. He wasn't used to people caring about him, other then Akiva, so the small gesture of kindness was confusing.

When Sahar didn't reply Eiji turned to Akiva who was inwardly kicking himself for not protecting his master, "You, go get some ice and a washcloth to wrap it in!"

Akiva blinked. He didn't take orders from this kid, but then again ice sounded like a good idea. He opened a door that was hidden by one of the bookcases and left too the ship's kitchen in search of the frozen water.

Once Akiva was gone Momoshiro recovered from his moment's panic, "Good idea to get rid of the bodyguard Kikumaru! Now we can get out of here if we use this kid as a hostage."

Sahar's eyes widened in a momentary laps of fear. Crap. He, who was considered at the top of the crime food chain, hadn't even paused to consider if this kind of situation could happen. Crap. Akiva had left to get ice for his face. The kitchen was a ways away, because he hadn't wanted his war room to smell like grease, so it would be awhile before his bodyguard got back. Crap. He was at the mercy of his guests who were more then a little angry with him. Crap.

"Momo!" Eiji scolded.

"That's a pretty good idea." Tezuka said slowly. "They wouldn't attack us that way."

Fuji placed his hand on Tezuka's shoulder, "Do you really think all those people are loyal to him?"

Sahar swallowed his breath. His hand covered most of his face so no one could see the expression he wore, which was one of pure terror. Anyone of his men, besides Akiva, would jump at the chance to kill him.

"I mean think about it," Fuji continued, "They might take it as an opportunity to get rid of their boss, some of them are bound to have the dream of taking over, if we go out with him as a hostage then if might not do us any good."

"Fuji has a point," Oishi said, "And besides I don't want to lower myself to their standards."

"Who cares about that? We need to get out of here before one of us gets killed." Momoshiro argued.

"The data states that we would have a 50/50 chance of succeeding if we tried Momoshiro's plan." Inui mumbled.

"We've beaten worse odds then that!" Momo said excitedly.

"That was when playing tennis," Taka pointed out.

"Momo," Ryoma finally spoke up from his place beside Fuji. "Don't be an idiot."

"What?" Momoshiro moped. "Don't call me an idiot!"

"All of you shut up!" Eiji barked the order. It wasn't as demanding as when Tezuka ordered them around but it got the desired effect, "Can't you see you've upset him?"

Everyone looked at Sahar. The boy hadn't moved an inch but his eyes were downcast and his legs were shaking slightly.

"Who cares?" Momoshiro snapped.

Eiji crossed his arms over his chest, "I do."

"Eiji?" Oishi asked. He wasn't sure if he heard his doubles partner right.

"I know we've all had a long night," Eiji began. "The guy who kidnapped Ryoma and I was real nasty. He was creepy, mean, and just looking at him made me was to bathe my eyes in holy water. I don't trust Sahar, but I believe him when he said he hadn't ordered Gradin to do that. Ryoma, I'm sure you can see the difference already on how we're being treated. We're not tied up, we're not being drugged, and I don't feel in danger anymore."

Ryoma slowly nodded his head in silent agreement. He had noticed the change when he had first gotten there.

"Sahar can't be much older then us, he's treated us decently so far, and now he's afraid of us because Kaidoh punched him in the nose with the help of Momoshiro. From the looks of things, we're the bad guys." Eiji finished by staring down Momoshiro.

"Don't pity the guy!" Momo yelled.

"But he does look pitiful," Fuji pointed out as he noticed how Sahar really did not fit the title of crime lord. "Oh come one." Momoshiro sighed caving in, "It was the Viper's fist that hit him!"

Ryoma rolled his eyes. Momo was cute, strong, but not the brightest.

Kaidoh was also feeling guilty, though he wasn't about to apologize, he wanted to know if Sahar's nose had started swelling or not. He didn't want to ask, probably wouldn't get an answer, but he did anyways, "How's your face?"

Sahar was surprised that he had been addressed, and was even more surprised who had addressed him. Now that his safety was semi established he didn't want to do anything to put himself in the hot seat again so he answered with a quick nod of the head, "It's fine."

It was a lie. An obvious lie. Everyone knew it had to hurt a lot, well everyone that had been punched by Kaidoh before, well Momoshiro. Kaidoh took a step forward and with his long arm pulled Sahar's hand away from his face. The redhead yelped at the sudden contact. He tried to back away but the desk stopped him. He panicked, which never helps in any situation, and his knees buckled underneath him. Sahar's left hand took the Risk game board down with him which sent any of the remaining pieces flying across the room. Everyone stared in shock at the heap of a person on the floor. Sahar was literally cowering. His left arm was covering his head. His legs ended up making a M shape which looked all but comfortable.

Kaidoh still stood with Sahar's right wrist in his hand. The boy's sudden submissiveness was uncanny and Kaidoh didn't know what to do. He was used to scaring people away, he had a frightening appearance so he was told, but this was a little extreme.

"You sure you're a crime lord?" Momoshiro tried joking to lighten the dark mood.

Sahar didn't answer, he was too busy being afraid.

"You're scaring him Kaidoh!" Eiji reprimanded. "Stop it."

Kaidoh looked over at Eiji feeling exasperated, "I'm not trying to."

"Well you are," The acrobat stated the obvious. "Maybe you should apologize."

He wasn't going to do that. He never apologizes. Never.

"Maybe you should start by letting go of him?" Fuji offered.

Kaidoh looked down at Sahar, the kid was so helpless looking. Could it be an act? If so he was a really good actor. Instead of letting Sahar's arm go he reached down and grabbed the other arm. Sahar jumped like he had received an electric shock but Kaidoh ignored it and pulled the teen up. "Sorry."

Just then Akiva opened up the bookcase door. In one hand was the icepack wrapped in a washcloth, in the other was a tray filled up with drinks. "Sorry I took so long master, I thought your guests might be thirsty."

Akiva noted how Sahar's face was still red and quickly brought the ice over to him. "For your face."

Kaidoh took the ice instead. Taking off his green bandana he placed the washcloth wrapped icepack in it. After making sure the ice was secure in the bandana he offered it to Sahar.

"What am I suppose to do with it?" Was Sahar's immediate response.

"Here," Kaidoh matched the ice with Sahar's nose then carefully tied the bandana around his head. This way Sahar wouldn't have to hold the ice to his face. Once the job was done Kaidoh took a few steps back, he didn't want to accidentally punch the kid again.

"Good idea," Akiva nodded his head approvingly. "Sahar's face is really red, I hope with the ice it'll return to its normal color."

"I-" Sahar was about to say something, but deciding otherwise and said, "I suppose it's time to get down to business."

"Anyone want a drink?" Akiva offered. "I promise they're just water."

Eiji took one first, and a few others followed pursuit.

Sahar sat himself on top of his desk and began with what he hoped would be the biggest heist ever to happen in America. "I need a team of specialist to break into Radcliff Fort Knox. This building houses the largest portion of US gold reserve and has 25% percent of the world's gold reserves. I've done research on it and I think, with the right people, I can break into it."

"That's where we come in?" Asked Tezuka.

"That's were you come in." Sahar confirmed. "This place was built in 1936. The building itself is two story, it has a basement and an attic. It's 105 feet by 121 feet. The entrance of the building is made of marble. This place has a separate emergency power plant, a water system, and other things that keep it in working order."

Inui was busy scribbling the information down into his notebook.

"What I'm after is the gold. There is about 540,000 gold bars belonging to 48 foreign central banks and 12 international organization in there. US has 5% gold stored there. Even the Federal Reserve Board stores gold there." Sahar adjusted the icepack.

"All this gold should be heavily protected. There's no way you can break into it." Oishi voiced his concern. "It would also be very dangerous." "There's a two level concrete and steel vault, that's where the gold is stored. The door to the vault in blast proof. It's made of granite, steel, and concrete. The door is 42 feet tall the door weighs over 20 tons. To open the door it takes a combination which is divided among many people so no single person has the whole thing. Inside the vault the accounts are identified by numbers and not by names." Sahar took a drink and drained the cup. "Only two presidents have ever visited the vault, Franklin Roosevelt, and Harry S. Truman. To get inside the vault you need a presidential order. Only people allowed in the vault are the employees and the Treasury Department officials. No reporters are allowed inside."

"So how do you plan on getting in?" Ryoma asked.

"Fort Knox. Akiva can you hold up the map?" Sahar waited until his bodyguard pulled out a map and opened it up to the United States. On the map was a large red circle to show everyone where it was located. "Fort Knox is located 35 miles from Louisville. It's 109,00 acres and is in 3 Kentucky counties. It houses 23,000 soldiers, their family members, and other civilians. This place has a Patton Museum of Armor and Cavalry which is free to enter. It has World War 1,2, and post war galleries There's a gate, Wilson Gate, which is open 24-7. To get inside you need to show them identification, a military ID, then they will issue a pass, and then they need to check access against the post bar."

"That didn't answer my question." Ryoma said when Sahar didn't continue.

"It's a long and complicated plan," Sahar sighed. "That isn't completely thought out. I need help to do that. You each play a role in my plan though. I need Inui to help create the plan, and I need him for all things involving data and numbers."

Inui thought it over, "It seems you have a lot of data already."

"I found it all on the internet." Sahar admitted. "It's what they don't allow the public to know that I'm interested in."

"It will be quite a challenge." Inui said thoughtfully.

"I need Kikumaru for his amazing acrobatic skills." Sahar addressed Eiji, "I'm not sure what's inside but if it involves jumping, or moving without the cameras catching you I'm sure you're the only one for the job."

"Well I am pretty flexible, nya!" Eiji said, bouncing for emphasis.

"There will be trickery involved in my plan. I need someone who can handle themselves while under pressure, and while in disguise." Sahar continued.

"Do I even have to ask if you're referring to me?" Fuji smiled.

"Guess not," Sahar returned the smile. "I need someone small and overall balanced in strength and speed. Ryoma, you are the smallest, are you afraid of small places?"

"No." Ryoma wasn't afraid of anything, except spiders, and Momoshiro always killed those.

"Good, you might need to crawl into the vent." Sahar nodded his head at Momoshiro. "I need someone strong. Strength can be used for many different things."

"Well I am pretty strong," Momo agreed.

"Oishi, you worry a lot, but you also think of worst case scenarios. You would be the best one to sit in front of my computer monitors and watch the team's progress. If you have a fear, voice it. Who knows, it could make the difference between getting caught or getting the gold." Sahar noticed Oishi seemed relived that he wouldn't be doing any field work. "Tezuka. This is your team. You're their captain, and their leader. I can't think of anyone better to be in charge."

"That's our Tezuka!" Fuji cheered. "He's levelheaded and strict."

"Kawamura, those cameras are going to be a big problem. I was thinking you might be able to take them out with tennis balls. Yes, your power is just what we need." Sahar noticed how timid Taka was, he would be a lot more braved with a tennis racket in his hand, another good reason to give him this job.

"That's such an important job though… I don't think I could…" Taka began mumbling.

"Sure you can!" Eiji said encouragingly.

"I want to help, it wouldn't feel right if I sent you guys out and stayed behind, so I'll be your weapons expert." Sahar observed how everyone grew tense. "I don't want to use them, but there is that 'if we get caught' problem, and we might need some explosives to get inside. The door to the vault may be blast proof but I wonder about the walls…"

"What about Kaidoh?" Eiji wasn't the only one to notice Sahar had passed over him.

Sahar frowned, "What about him?"

"What's his role going to be?" Eiji was unrelenting.

Sahar looked at Kaidoh, who he had been avoiding with his eyes the whole time he was talking. Kaidoh stared back, unblinking. "He isn't needed…"

Kaidoh balled his hands into fists, which was got him in trouble in the first place, but then released them as Sahar added, "…but his long arms might be useful. He can reach switches, buttons, and levers that are usually out of reach."

Sahar stopped the staring contest, he would have lost anyways, to hop off his desk. "If you guys are willing to, I think we can pull this off."

"And if we're not?" Momoshiro asked.

Sahar shrugged, "You wont get any of the cut."

"You mean we get a share of the gold?" Momoshiro asked.

"I get 50% and the rest can be dived among whoever helps." Sahar smiled, "Are you considering helping?"

Before anyone answered he said, "On second thought you guys should sleep on it. While we've been in here the sun has already gone down."

"That late already?" Eiji was surprised. It had only seemed like an hour had passed by, two tops.

"Akiva will you go prepare our quests their rooms?" Sahar waited tell Akiva was gone, lately his bodyguard was acting more like a butler, he would have to apologize to him later, before saying, "If you guys had gone with that plan from earlier, the one where you use me as a hostage, you wouldn't have gotten far because the moment you were all on the boat we took off."

No one said anything, they all secretly wondered if he was mad at them.

"How's your nose?" Eiji asked, the silence was just too awkward.

"It's better," Sahar smiled at Eiji, "Thank you."

A few more minutes of silence before Sahar decided that was enough, "Let's get out of here and head too bed shall we? Akiva had a head start, I'm sure he's done by now."

One at a time everyone left through the bookcase door. They found themselves on the top deck. Indeed it was now dark out and the ocean looked black like ink. No one else was up and about, it was hard to imagine were all those men in black were.

Sahar led the group to the cabins where Akiva was waiting.

"I'm afraid there are fewer rooms then we first thought," Akiva spoke to Sahar but everyone could hear.

"It's okay, we can share." Tezuka spoke for everyone, but they all agreed.

"There are only two rooms available and each room only has two beds." Akiva informed them.

"We can put 4 into one room and 5 in another." Oishi said. "Eiji, Kawamura, Inui, Fuji, and I could sleep in one room and Tezuka, Momoshiro, Ryoma, and Kaidoh could have the other."

"There's no way I'm sleeping in the same room as Viper!" Momoshiro protested.

There were a few other complaints.

"Sorry," Sahar said, "If we need to I can throw some of my more useless lackeys off the boat."

"That wont be necessary." Eiji said quickly.

"If you're so sorry maybe you should give us more space to work with." Momoshiro said.

"Like what?" Sahar put his hands on his hips. "This boat only has so many rooms, and you can't sleep in the kitchen, that's unsanitary!"

"What about your bedroom?" Momoshiro asked, "It must be the biggest one on this boat."

It was.

"So? It only has one bed and I'm not sharing it!" Sahar looked appalled.

Inui did some quick math in his head, "How big is your bed?"

"I told you I'm not sharing it!" Sahar stomped his foot.

"It's a king size bed, but it's round." Akiva supplied.

"Traitor!" Sahar groaned but it didn't seem he was very serious about the accusation.

"If you don't want to share your bed then maybe you can switch beds," Inui was thinking about what would be comfortable for everyone. "In one room Momoshiro could share a bed with Echizen, and Kikumaru could share one with Oishi. That would make the most sense because Echizen and Kikumaru are both small, and Momoshiro and Oishi are larger, so they would be more comfortable sharing beds. In your room Sahar, because you have a bigger bed, we could fit three people. It would be wisest to put the three tallest in it, which would be Kawamura, Tezuka, and myself."

"I guess that would leave me, Kaidoh, and Sahar in the last room?" Asked Fuji, who was disappointed because he couldn't sleep next to Tezuka, but he wasn't showing it.

"If logic dictates it." Inui replied.

"Can't argue with the data," Eiji nodded.

"No way!" Sahar protested.

"You get your own bed." Momoshiro said it as if it was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Ryoma sounded slightly offended.

"Guys," Oishi intervened. "It's getting late! Let's all head to bed."

"Here are the two cabins," Akiva pointed at two door that were behind him. "I'll take you three to Sahar's room, if that's okay with him."

Everyone looked at Sahar.

He rolled his eyes, "Fine, whatever, just don't mess with my things."

"Want me to come to your cabin when I'm done?" Akiva asked Sahar.

"Unless someone is planning on strangling me while I sleep," All eyes turned to Kaidoh, "Then I think I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Sahar always slept with Akiva in the room, for safety reasons, there had been a few assassination attempts.

"Yes!" Sahar flung open one of the cabin's doors and he could be heard from inside grumbling, "What are you my mother?"

And that was that. Everyone went into their respected rooms, and one thing was on everyone's mind, it was going to be a **long** night.

_To be continued…_


	16. Chapter 16 The Reason Hidden Within

The Reason Hidden Within

The room they were in was very simple. There were two beds parallel to each other on opposite walls, and a circular window facing the sea. That was about it. Sahar sat on the bed that hugged the left wall. He was tired and a little stressed, who wouldn't be after the day he had gone through?

"How's your nose?" Fuji asked. Sahar hadn't noticed him until he was right in front of him. "Can I take a look? I am a nurse after all!"

Sahar looked at what Fuji was wearing, "Are you really?"

"No," Fuji paused, "But I do have a younger brother who used to get banged up a lot."

Sahar nodded his head. Fuji untied the bandana, placed the melted icepack out of the way, then looked at the boy's face. "It looks a lot better, I think it's only going to leave a small bruise."

"We can get you a change of clothes in the morning." Sahar said, his way of saying thank you. It could not be comfortable wearing a dress around he figured, but then again he didn't know Fuji.

"Sounds nice." Fuji turned around to see Kaidoh on the floor. "And just what are you doing?"

"Going to sleep." He said. He was staring up at the ceiling trying not to accidentally look up Fuji's skirt as he moved about the room.

"Why are you on the floor?" Fuji asked when it appeared he wasn't going to continue.

"As my Senpai you should have the bed," Kaidoh said.

Fuji thought it over. He would have felt awkward if he had to share a bed with the younger teen. It was a nice gesture and to honor it he would accept it. "Thank you."

"Hmph." Kaidoh rolled onto his stomach and used his arms as a pillow. The floor was another safe place to look at.

Fuji turned off the light before heading to his bed. "Good night everyone."

"Fshh." Was Kaidoh's reply.

"Night," Sahar said so quietly it could barely be heard over the sound of waves crashing against the side of the boat. He set the icepack aside so he wouldn't roll on it as he slept and wonder what was squishy. He was pulling the blankets up to his chin when he noticed the green bandana near his feet. He sat up and grabbed the piece of cloth. He needed to give this back to Kaidoh…

Sahar looked at the ground where the Viper was already asleep. There was no way he was about to wake him up, guess he would have to leave it until morning. He didn't know where to put the dang thing, that's when he realized he wasn't wearing his usual silk pajamas to bed, but his clothes. Sahar finally ended up just stuffing the thing into his pant's pocket. What a bother.

---

"Here's the room." Akiva stopped just a few feet away from large double doors. When Akiva opened the doors it was like stepping into an underwater palace. One entire wall was like a window to the ocean but in reality it was a giant fish tank. Light blue silk hung around the actual circular windows making the dark ocean look more inviting. The bed was the main focus of the room, as it was in the center, but there was much more to the room then that. The bed's blanket was dark blue with dark green sparkles making it look magical. There was a pillow on the bed in the shape of a starfish, it was orange, and it was detailed like the real thing up to the feelers even. There was also a sand dollar, sea anemone, and a body pillow the shape of a dolphin. There was a leather sofa in the upper right corner of the room and off to it's right was the door leading to the bathroom. There was a wooden chest by the fish tank, it would appear to be a "treasure chest" but in reality it was where Sahar stored his clothes because he had no closet.

"It's…" Tezuka couldn't find words to describe what he was seeing.

"I would not have imagined this to be the bedroom of a crime lord." Inui said thoughtfully.

"It's cute." Kawamaru said. He noticed an umbrella stand beside the door that was decorated like an octopus, it held nothing inside of it.

Akiva noticed where he was looking, Taka meant the whole room was cute, but Akiva thought he mean the octopus. "He got that at a yard sale."

"Who?" Taka asked, knowing full well who he meant, but was still surprised.

"Sahar."

Inui was scribbling things down in his notebook, "Interesting."

---

Inside the other room that was identical to all the other cabins Momoshiro and Ryoma were having a dilemma. They liked each other. They hung out a lot knowing that. They were comfortable with how things were. Sure they got close sometimes while playing tennis, and there was that one time on Ryoma's couch where they were pretty close physically. They never really made it official though. They were together but not. They weren't worried about openly being gay around their teammates because some of their teammates appeared to be in the same situation. Fuji was gay enough for everyone. No the problem didn't lie there. It was them, or more specifically Ryoma. Momoshiro had no problem showing his feeling to the smaller, but Ryoma wasn't as open as he was. He was also only 12 but it wasn't like they were going to have sex, at least not anytime soon. After the night and day they had though, they felt closer, well closer then they had ever been before. Ryoma had felt insecure, scared, and was tortured, so having Momoshiro near him was like having a security blanket. Sharing a bed wouldn't normally have been a big deal but it felt different now. They were different then they were a day ago at school where they were passing notes back and forth.

"Momo…" Ryoma said under his breath. Momoshiro knew how Ryoma felt, so he had gotten on the bed first and scooted all the way over to the wall.

"Look we wont even be touching," Momoshiro said reassuringly.

"Momoshiro…" Ryoma said, trying to get his best friend slash possible lover to look at him.

When the older one finally did look up at Ryoma, Ryoma sighed.

"Look if you want I can sleep on the floor." Momoshiro made a move to get off the bed, Ryoma stopped him by sitting down on the bed himself, blocking Momoshiro's path of escape. He waited for Ryoma to say something, but he didn't.

"Will you two be okay tonight?" Oishi, the worrywart like always asked as he fluffed his and Eiji's pillow.

"You guys wont do anything naughty tonight will you?" Eiji joked.

"They can't!" Oishi gasped, "They're too young!"

"Nya Oishi, I was just kidding!" Eiji laughed. "Pigs will fly before something like that happens!"

"We can hear you…" Momoshiro tossed a pillow at Eiji's head. The acrobat with keen eyesight dodged it without a problem.

"I'm keeping this!" Eiji said as he hugged the pillow.

Momoshiro's jaw dropped. "No, give it back!"

"No!" Eiji stuck out his tongue at Momoshiro.

"Kikumaru," Oishi said, trying to play the role of peacemaker.

Eiji frowned, then with fake tears in his eyes asked, "How could you?"

Oishi panicked, "Because they need their pillow, and it's the right thing to do, but I'm not picking sides!"

"Not that!" Eiji shook his head and buried his face into Momo's pillow.

"Oh." Oishi deadpanned then realization hit him, "Oh. Oh! I'm sorry. Let me try again?"

Eiji raised one eye from out of the pillow to watch his doubles partner.

Oishi cleared his throat as if announcing something important, "Eiji, could you give the pillow back to Momoshiro?"

Eiji pulled his face away from the pillow and smiled, "Okay, Shuichiro!"

Eiji walked over to Momoshiro and Ryoma's bed. He handed the pillow to Momoshiro and placed a hand on Ryoma's shoulder. "Hey Echizen, are you okay? Last time I saw you things were…"

Ryoma quickly looked up at the redhead, "Yeah I'm fine."

"Are you really?" Eiji pouted. "O chibi, don't act tougher then you are, you're not alone."

"I know," Ryoma huffed.

"You're not alone because Momoshiro is right next to you!" Eiji said cheerfully.

"Go back to your own bed," Momo laughed because Ryoma's face turned a slightly darker color. It was cute.

"Nya!" Eiji turned off the lights and joined Oishi on their bed. "Guess it's time to sleep!"

Ryoma finally sat back and rested his head on his share of the pillow, because each bed only had one. He could feel Momoshiro breathing beside him. There was no way he could sleep like this. It seemed Momo couldn't sleep either because after a few minutes he whispered so as not to disturb the others, "Hey Ryoma?"

"Hm," Ryoma didn't feel like saying anything unnecessary.

Momoshiro paused, "It doesn't bother you that I call you by your first name?"

"No," Ryoma furrowed his brow, "Should it?"

"No." It was a few more minutes until Momoshiro whispered, "But Kikumaru makes a big deal whenever Oishi doesn't call him by his first name, it's important to him."

"Well that's Eiji."

"Well I just thought…" Momoshiro was beginning to regret saying anything.

"Thought what?" Ryoma raised himself up onto his elbows and looked down at Momoshiro. It was hard to make out the other's face in the dark. "That I would also make a big deal about it?"

"No… well yeah something like that." Momoshiro also propped himself up.

"I see, well it doesn't matter to me." Ryoma told him so there wouldn't be a shadow of a doubt in his mind.

"Then why do you never call me by my first name?"

"Uh," Ryoma faltered.

"Does it bother you?"

"No."

"Then say it."

"Why should I?"

"Because I want to hear it."

"That's a stupid reason."

"So?"

"Fine."

"You'll say it?"

"If it'll make you shut up."

"It might."

"Momo!"

"I'm sorry what was that?"

"Momoshiro!"

"Couldn't hear you."

Ryoma sighed. Momoshiro was childish, but him acting like that made the tension from earlier disappear. "Takeshi."

"Hm?"

"You're an idiot."

The insult was said in a playful manner so Momoshiro planned to only pushed Ryoma slightly, not hard enough to knock him out of the bed, but enough to put him off balance. His palm touched Ryoma's arm and the boy flinched. Momoshiro pulled his hand away quickly. "Did that hurt?"

"No."

"Ryoma…"

"It didn't!"

Momoshiro carefully grabbed Ryoma's wrist and pushed up the boy's sleeve. It was still dark but when he traced his fingers along Ryoma's skin he could feel the welts. Ryoma didn't move. "You're telling me these don't hurt?"

Momoshiro sounded mad. "Don't lie about it."

Ryoma hung his head.

"Are there more of them?" Momoshiro let the sleeve fall back into place.

"Yes." Ryoma couldn't see Momoshiro's face but he could feel his intense stare. "There's 8 of them."

"Who did this to you?" Momoshiro sounded really scary. He was trying to keep his anger and his voice down.

"He's dead." Ryoma said quickly. "Sahar said he took care of him."

"Oh." Momoshiro let go of the blanket that he hadn't realized he was gripping. "And I helped Kaidoh punch the guy in the nose."

"And you were an ass to him!" Eiji called from across the room.

"Go back to sleep!" Momoshiro called back. He then looked over at Ryoma. "Don't worry."

"About what?" Ryoma asked as he lowered himself back to the bed.

Momoshiro did the same. " Don't worry I wont let anyone else hurt you."

Ryoma blinked. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

"I don't."

---

Inui had insisted that Akiva answer a few questions before he left. It was to add to his research so the bodyguard agreed. Now Akiva sat on the leather sofa where just earlier there had been glass all over it. Inui was standing in front of him with his notebook out, pen in hand. Taka was sitting on the coach on Akiva's right, Tezuka was on Akiva's left.

"Okay I'm going to began with some simple questions." Inui started. "Why are you a bodyguard?"

Akiva didn't know how this would help research, but maybe it would help them better understand his master. "That's simple, Sahar needs me."

It was odd that he said Sahar needed him. Inui imagined a crime lord would have lots of bodyguards. So to get everything cleared up he asked, "Why?"

"He has no one else." Akiva answered.

"What do you mean? Doesn't he have all those men on this ship? What about family, does he not have any family?" Taka asked much to Inui's annoyance.

"He does." Akiva said with a tone that seemed haunted.

"Then what did you mean before?" Tezuka asked because he noticed Inui was busy writing stuff down.

"No one else loves him."

---

"Hey Shuichiro," Eiji whispered.

"Yeah?" Oishi mumbled, he was very tired and the sleep was dragging him in.

Eiji reached out with one of his hands and squeezed one of Oishi's, "I'm happy you're here."

Any sleep that had begun to cloud Oishi's mind was instantly wiped away and he squeezed back. "I'm just glad you're safe."

"Me too." Eiji paused. "It was really scary."

Oishi scooted a little closer to his doubles partner, never letting go of his hand. "I…I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to help… but I-"

"Just you being here is helping!" Eiji said as he rested his head on Oishi's shoulder. "Shuichiro, you're warm!"

"Is that a bad thing?" Oishi asked, suddenly self-conscious.

"No, silly!" Eiji chuckled a little, "It's nice."

---

Everyone was silent. No one else loved him? What was that suppose to mean? How were they suppose to take that?

Akiva noticed the all around solemn faces and realized he had said something strange that needed to be explained better. "I'm not sure where to began. I guess the truth is the best place."

"The truth?" Tezuka asked.

"Well the truth is Sahar is not a crime lord." Akiva said it with dark humor in his voice. "Though I suppose you could already tell by looking at him, seeing how he acts, and if you were blind to it before surely this room says it all. He's just a kid."

"Then…" Taka began, not sure of what he himself was asking.

"Sahar's father is the real crime lord." Akiva stood up and began walking around the room. "This boat is also his father's, as is every man on it besides myself. Sahar stole it from his father's harbor, and paid the men to come with him, though that wasn't the smartest thing he's ever done. I tried to talk him out of it but he wouldn't listen, insisted he needed a small army so people would listen to him. A lot of them are loyal to his father and have already tried to kill in his sleep multiple times."

The three tennis players waited for him to continue, they were flabbergasted.

"His father is also the reason we're here." Akiva stood looking at the fishes in the fish tank. "Sahar wanted to prove to his father that he was a worthy son by robbing the Gold Vault. It's a lost cause if you ask me."

"Why is that?" Takashi asked quietly.

"His father will never accept him," Akiva followed a tiger fish with one of his fingers. "He's too much of a good person."

---

There were voices outside. They were laughing and joking around. It was annoying. Eiji pulled himself out from the blankets, and away from the warmth of Oishi. He regretted to untangle his fingers from the other's but with those voices he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. He tipped toed out of the room, making sure to shut the door so hopefully the voices wouldn't wake the others up.

The deck of the ship was beautiful at night. Like before the ocean was dark and looked like a void of nothingness. The stars littered the sky and was like nothing he could see from his home. The air was cool and smelled salty, and whenever Eiji breathed through his mouth it was as if he was drinking in that salty air. Now to find where the voices were coming from…

Eiji began walking in a random direction, because he had no idea where to go. Even if the people who had been noisy before were gone he had too much energy to fall back sleep. He had almost gone in a complete circle when those voices could be heard once again.

---

"You might not believe me," Akiva said sadly. "I know I wouldn't if I had gone through what you guys have, but he is."

"His father…" Inui began.

"Is…" Akiva's reflection in the fish tank became twisted and dangerous. "I've been with Sahar sense he was five and I was his age. His mother was the one who hired me, best thing she ever did for him."

"Is she…?" Takashi's face appeared worried.

"She's gone." Akiva sighed. "She couldn't stand the man anymore, I can't blame her, but I can hate her for it. She disappeared a week after I first met Sahar. She brought him into this world and left him to the devil."

"Is she dead?" Inui asked, trying to get a better picture of what Akiva meant by 'gone'.

"Who knows? She herself packed her bags and left in the night. Whether _he _caught up to her or not I don't know, but either way it doesn't change the fact that she abandoned Sahar."

"My god." Takashi said, he couldn't imagine someone doing that to a little kid. That was, it was just too cruel, but only the beginning.

"Sahar has never had a good relationship with his father, it might be the fact that he looks a lot like his mother, or just because his father likes watching him suffer." Akiva walked away from the fish and sat down on the bed. "If you teach your kids to be bad they'll grow up to be bad, I don't know if that's true, but I do know that _he _beat it into Sahar. That doing bad things was good, hurting others is how you get by in this world, that justice is just a joke. Not long after Sahar's mother left things went downhill. _He _would take Sahar out with him when he went on heists. He would sit in the car and watch as his father's men shot families, children his own age, even the family pets. It was mostly enemies of the family, but there were other times."

Akiva was sitting so his hands were together in front of him, his elbows resting on his legs, and his face pointed to the ground so no one could read his expression. "_He _would make him steal with his own hands. It started with pick pocketing, and when Sahar wouldn't, _he _would leave him in the worst parts of the city. He especially liked leaving him near gang hideouts. If I hadn't been allowed to stay with him I don't think he would be alive today. Those were some of the better punishments, I can say that even though I took a beating more then once from those gang kids, at least then I could protect him. When his father got physical I couldn't do a thing. I wanted to, but if I had tried I would have been killed, and I would have left Sahar alone."

Akiva took a shaky breath. He had never told anyone about this before, he didn't have to, the only person that mattered to him was Sahar, and he already knew everything. Before he convinced himself to stop talking he went on, hoping it would get easier to talk about, but it wouldn't. "When Sahar was six his father ordered two of his men to kick him for half an hour because he wouldn't steal from a gas station. He was in the hospital for 3 weeks after that, but his father didn't stop even then. The whole time the kid was there he didn't get any rest, the doctors didn't say anything though, they were paid off to ignore it. There was a time when he was eight that he refused to steal from his teacher, that was the last day he ever went to school. I taught him all I knew after that, and he read books, he was really smart. His favorite subject is history, then science, they make sense to him. I guess he figures science will never lie to him, and he can learn from history."

"Did you go to school?" Inui asked.

"Yes, until the day I was hired to be Sahar's bodyguard I went to school." Sahar laughed. "I used to hate school, now I'm sad I missed out on it, but I would not have done things any differently."

"What about your family?" Tezuka asked.

"Once I became a bodyguard Sahar became my only family." Akiva smiled, his first one in awhile, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. "His father's abusiveness scared me. When I became nineteen I realized I was in over my head. There he was, a fragile nine year old, the victim of him own father. He looked at me each day as if I would be his savior, but I was a coward and could do nothing against _him_. After each beating I felt like the scum of the earth. I could do nothing but watch, and it went on for years. For years I let that man attack Sahar, physically and mentally. It got to the point where he could only cry himself to sleep where the harassment would continue in the form of nightmares. I started sleeping in the same room as him when he was twelve because once his father had sent some men to scare him by wearing frightening masks covered in blood. It wouldn't have been as scary if the blood hadn't been real, or the severed head they placed on the foot of his bed. After that he no longer felt safe in his own room. Even with me there the nightmares continued and so did the suffering.

"One day he snapped." Akiva looked over at Tezuka, Inui, and Takashi. "Can you really blame him though? One day he stopped disobeying his father and started to steal, he was thirteen. His father stopped hitting him, and the nightmares only came twice a week. He looked happy, finally he was doing something right in his father's eyes. It was just a dream though, I knew it couldn't last, and it didn't. Sahar wasn't like his father. He never will be like that man."

"What happened?" Tezuka asked softly.

"His father asked him to kill." Akiva covered his eyes with his hands. "The man was old, had white hair and layers of wrinkles, he was going to die soon, I tried to tell him it would be okay. There I was, trying to convince a fourteen year old boy to kill someone. I'm horrible, I know, but I knew what his father would do to him if he didn't."

Akiva paused, "But I was wrong."

"Wrong?" Inui asked.

"I never could have imagined a father doing that to his son… I… couldn't stop it either." Akiva was crying now, he hadn't realized it until the drops of water fell to his hand. "First off his father dragged him to the old man's pool and threw him in. Sahar can't swim. He was drowning. I tried to jump in and save him but _he _ordered his men to stop me. It took five of them but it got the job down. Sahar managed to make his way to the side of the pool and pull himself out. Those were the longest seconds of my life, when I thought Sahar might die. After that Sahar's father ordered him to be put into isolation for a year. During that year I worked out, learned to fire a gun, I did everything I could think of that would benefit Sahar when he got out. Meanwhile Sahar plotted. At first he wanted to please his father, but now…"

"Now?" Inui prompted.

"Now I'm not so sure… I thought his goal changed to getting back at his father for all those years by outdoing anything he's ever done but…"

"Now he's doing it for himself?" Inui asked.

Akiva looked up, "How did you guess?"

"After observing him earlier, it just seems like something he would do." Inui explained.

---

"I can't believe he stole a boat just to pick up his friends." Andrew spoke through his cigarette. "I don't care how much he paid us, I'm sick of this!"

"I know what you mean," Omar shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. "He acts so high and mighty but he's just a little shit."

"Think we should wipe our shoes of this shit?" Chazz asked as he made a motion of wiping his shoe on the ship's railing.

All three laughed.

---

Sahar's eyes flew open. He suddenly felt very vulnerable without Akiva being near him. He thought he would be okay, with the two others in the same room, but there was a tight feeling growing in his chest. He had to get out of there. He had to get fresh air. Sahar pushed the blankets off him and stepped onto the floor. It felt cold. He took a few steps, in the direction he hoped was the door, when his foot hit something solid and he fell.

Tripping over a sleeping Kaidoh was the last thing in the world he ever wanted to happen. Oh but it did. Sahar's foot had hit Kaidoh's legs and he was now sprawled out across the floor.

"What are you doing?" Kaidoh asked. The question came out sounding like he was angry but it was just the sleep effecting his voice.

Sahar quickly picked himself up, "I. Uh."

"Do you always talk nervously when you sleepwalk?" Kaidoh sat up.

"I wasn't sleepwalking." Sahar said.

"Oh? Then where are you going?" Kaidoh noticed Sahar was inching towards the door. Was he really that scary?

"I need out," Sahar tried explaining, but he didn't understand it himself. It was like the blind leading the blind. "Uh. I need air."

"The air in here not good enough?" Kaidoh asked. He thought the conversation was strange and was trying to figure out if he was dreaming or not.

"No. So, uh, I'm going to go get some." Sahar's hand reached for the doorknob while he was still facing Kaidoh.

"Get some better air?" Kaidoh asked to confirm it.

"Yeah…" Sahar opened the door and already had one foot out of it. "… so bye!"

"Are you sure it's safe to go alone…?" Sahar was already gone when Kaidoh asked the question. Oh well, not his problem, he laid back down to get more sleep.

---

"What a tragic childhood…" Takashi was on the verge of tears, he was a sucker for a sad story.

"What I don't get is why he didn't runaway." Inui mumbled.

"That would have been impossible." Akiva said miserably. "If you think it's going to be hard to break into Fort Knox, imagine if you were inside and trying to break out. Sahar's house is something like that, but we did manage to escape, we're here aren't we?"

"So this," Tezuka indicated the boat with his hands. "Is you running away?" "Yeah." Akiva shuddered. "I hate to think of what will happen if _he _catches up to us."

---

Eiji was currently eavesdropping on three of the men wearing black. They were saying some pretty nasty things about Sahar. Eiji didn't like the way the conversation was heading. He was debating whether to go find Akiva and tell him when fate chose a different path for him. Smoke from Andrew's cigarette went into Eiji's nose and made him sneeze. The sound couldn't have been that loud but all three of the men turned their heads.

"What the fuck?" Omar asked. "Were you listening to us?"

"Hey," Andrew said, tossing the rest of his cigarette into the ocean. "I think that's one of the kids Sahar brought on the boat. Wanna mess him up?"

"Hmp." Chazz looked at Eiji. "I don't care what you do to him, tonight my target is Sahar himself, not one of his friends."

"Is that so?" Sahar was standing behind Eiji now. He had heard voices when he went to get air, and possibly to get away from Kaidoh, and had followed them to where he was now. Sounded like people were plotting against him. Just great, more trouble then he needed.

"Oh crap," Omar swallowed the gum he had been chewing.

"Good evening gentlemen, fine night for a walk, eh?" Sahar stepped up so he was beside Eiji. "I hope you're not causing trouble for my guests."

"We're not." Omar said quickly.

"Oh?" Sahar looked at Eiji. "Were they causing you trouble?"

Eiji paused, "No. Not yet."

"I see." Sahar looked back at the three men. "I think it would be best if you went back to your cabins now."

The two redheads watched as the men left the deck, all three in foul moods.

"Well that was scary." Eiji said when they were alone.

"Yeah, you need to be more careful. Walking alone on the deck of a ship full of trained killers will get you killed." Sahar walked over to the railing. "But it's almost worth it for the view."

"You were doing it too," Eiji joined Sahar, the self-proclaimed crime lord, by the railing. "Walking around alone, I mean."

"Yeah," Sahar turned to the ship and leaned back against the railing. "I guess we're both careless."

---

"Well sorry for keeping you up with our boring story," Akiva stood up. "I think it's about time I go."

"What's the rush?" Inui asked, he was disappointed he wouldn't be able to get more data on their hosts.

Akiva paused at the door, a smile graced his face, "I was thinking about checking in on Sahar before I go to sleep. Goodnight."

---

Oishi reached his hand out and felt only emptiness. The mattress was cold meaning no one had been in it for awhile. Strange. Where had Eiji gone off to? The bathroom maybe? Oishi waited a few minutes before deciding Eiji had been gone for far too long. He assumed Eiji got lost while looking for the bathroom. Oishi left the cabin and noticed the bathroom was right across the hall. Okay… then where was Eiji? Not even he could have gotten lost that easily!

Oishi was walking around when he saw a familiar figure, "Greetings Akiva."

"Oh." The bodyguard had been lost in his thoughts and hadn't even seen the teen. "What are you doing out of bed?"

"I'm looking for Eiji, you might know him better as Kikumaru though."

"Oh the redhead?" Akiva asked.

"Yeah him."

"He's not in bed?" Akiva asked surprised.

"No," Oishi scratched the back of his head, something he did when he was nerves. "I'm a little worried about him."

"I'll help you look." Akiva offered.

The two walked around the lower parts of the ship, slowly making their way to the deck.

"Okay he must be up here." Akiva declared.

"Hey wait a minute," Oishi stopped walking. "Isn't that Sahar and Eiji over there?"

Akiva turned his head.

Sahar and Eiji were talking with each other, they seemed to be admiring the view, as well as enjoying each other's company.

"Sahar doesn't have any friends." Akiva said out of the blue after watching the two for a few minutes. "Your friend has been really nice to him."

"He's just that kind of person." Oishi smiled.

"It'll be good for him." Akiva nodded his head approvingly.

"What will be?"

"Having you guys around." Akiva sighed. "He's never been able to interact with kids his own age, that's why he tries to act grownup."

"I think I can sleep now." Oishi said satisfied. "As long as he's not alone, and is happy, I don't seen what's wrong with him staying up."

"Yeah." Akiva look at Sahar who was laughing at something Eiji had said. "I think I can sleep better now too, knowing little by little he's healing his heart."

Oishi gave the man an odd look but didn't say anything. "Well I'm off too bed."

"Yes goodnight," Akiva watched Oishi head back to his cabin. He turned his head to look back at Sahar one last time. Yep having those kids aboard will defiantly be good for him. He walked off to bed feeling more light hearted then he had in years.

---

"So did you guys win the match?" Sahar asked.

"No," Eiji frowned. "Sadly my battery ran out and I could not longer play, nya."

"Really, after all that?" Sahar sounded disappointed.

"Yeah."

"Your doubles partner seems really amazing though!" Sahar exclaimed. "He's like Akiva."

"What do you mean? Does Akiva play tennis?" Eiji tried picturing the man on a tennis court, it was a funny sight.

"No," Sahar laughed, he must have thought that image was also funny. "I meant that he's always there for me and watches my back, like your Oishi."

"Yeah, I guess you're right!" Eiji gasped. "That's really cool! We're a lot alike."

"We are?" Sahar raised an eyebrow at Eiji. "How so?"

"We're both redheads, we have awesome people who watch our backs, we both aren't the tallest of people, we're both right handed, we-"

"You're both about to get your asses kicked." Chazz said, his friends were behind him.

"I thought I sent you guys to your cabins." Sahar frowned.

"Guess again you little shit," Chazz walked towards them menacingly. "I'm about to send _you _to the bottom of the ocean."

---

Both Ryoma and Kaidoh stood outside the bathroom.

"I said you could go first," Kaidoh said it again.

"No I insist, you go first, you're older." Ryoma replied again.

They weren't getting anywhere, the way they were going, they would both be standing out there for awhile.

---

"Get back here!" Chazz yelled.

The two had known the attack was coming but they couldn't prepared for it. Omar and Andrew had tried to jump Eiji, they saw him as the bigger threat, but he evaded them by jumping out of reach. "You can't catch me if you're that slow, nya!"

Eiji was leading the two away from Sahar and Chazz who were struggling against the railing.

Chazz had a hand on both of Sahar's shoulders and was trying to push him back. "Just fall already!"

Sahar was trying to push the man off him but he had a height and weight advantage. He could see the writing on the wall, there was just no way he could hold off the man's attack. His fears were answered when he heard a yelp escape his own lips as he was picked up off the ground.

"Say hello to the fishes for me," Chazz growled.

"No, please!" Sahar pleaded just as Chazz tossed him overboard and into the sea.

Eiji watched in horror as the boy flailed his arms around before he hit the water with a splash. "Sahar no!"

---

"Inui are you still up?" Takashi asked the data man.

"I'm not in bed, so yes I am still up." Inui looked over at Takashi. "What's wrong, can't sleep?"

"No, after hearing Akiva talk about Sahar's past I'm having a hard time getting my mind to stop thinking."

"Welcome to my world." Inui said jokingly.

"What do you do to help you sleep?" Takashi asked.

"Drink a glass of milk, run a few laps, research something interesting, make a new super juice to test on you guys." Inui shrugged. "What works for me doesn't necessarily mean it'll work for you."

"Milk sounds good," Takashi said wishfully. "Do you know where the kitchen is?"

"I might. If you just think about how boats are built…" Inui stood up and walked over to the double doors. "I'm sure I can figure this out."

Takashi and Inui were walking towards the storage room, not in the direction of the kitchens when they saw Sahar being tossed off the boat.

"Oh no!" Takashi gasped.

"Didn't Akiva say Sahar couldn't swim?" Inui asked, trying to recall all the information that was in his notebook.

---

Ryoma and Kaidoh who had heard the struggle saw what had happened. Ryoma, thinking on his feet, opened a nearby broom closet and pulled out a broom, along with sponges, and a bottle of soap. He quickly squirted soap onto the yellow sponges. There were four in all, more then he needed. He threw one sponge up into the air and with the broom hit it just right. The sponge landed right where Andrew stepped and when he stepped on it he slipped and fell. With one of the threats taken care of Eiji had time to run to get a floatation devise and throw it into the ocean where Sahar was struggling to stay afloat.

Ryoma threw up another sponge and this time the sponge hit Omar in the face. With soap in his eyes he could no longer see and ran off in the direction of the bathroom which he could only do so because he had the ship's layout memorized. When he went past Ryoma and Kaidoh, Kaidoh stuck out a leg and tripped the man. He fell on his stomach and struggled to get up.

Only Chazz was left.

"What the hell, who are you people?" He was backed against the rail.

---

"Guys!" Takashi and Inui came running to join the others.

"Crap, there's more of you?" Chazz didn't like the odds. "I'm out of here!"

Chazz, who was more fit then the other two, ran passed Kaidoh and Ryoma, who hadn't been expecting him to come their way after what happened to the last guy. Ryoma was quick to chase after him but had made sure to grab the broom and a sponge before he left.

Kaidoh was going to join in the chase until he heard Inui say, "Quick! We have to get Sahar out of the water, he can't swim, and that flotation ring wont keep him above the waves for long!"

Eiji, Kaidoh, Inui, and Takashi all looked over the rail at where Sahar was barely holding on to the red and white doughnut. Someone had to jump into the water and save him, before he drowned.

_To be continued…_

There's a poll in my profile for this story's OC Sahar. I don't know about my OC's love life, or who I should pair him with if I even pair him with someone. A few people have had ideas and now I'm not sure where I want this to go. I'm not putting any names of people who have already been paired up in the poll. Doesn't mean there can be some love mishaps along the way. So please vote for who you want Sahar to end up with in the end.

**Please note this will inevitably determine how the story ends because Sahar plays a major role, after all he had everyone kidnapped and it's his plan. The ending is different for each person on the poll, whether it has a happy ending or a more tragic one.**

I'm not going to say what will happen for each person, because I want you to pick whichever one you want. After the poll is done, feel free to ask about ones that weren't picked and I'll be happy to tell you about what could have been. =D

I wanted to do it this way because I couldn't decide, so I'm making you do that hard part for me, sorry! xD

***Note: **I need people to vote on this right away because whoever you pick will effect every chapter after this one!

So no pressure peoples! ^^

A lot of people have this on alert, so I hope to see lots of reviews telling me what you think!

I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written… for any of my stories… there may have been one that was longer but… wow… a lot of words… I started it and haven't left my computer sense, so this was finished all at once… I hope you guys are grateful… the next chapter wont be as long, I'm sure of it… lol… I spent a lot of time thinking about this chapter… you guys better not ask for me to quickly update…I have to post a chapter on my other stories first so…omg I need sleep… if you've read all this then you're a brave soul… goodnight! -- **A2D**


	17. Chapter 17 Assorted Feelings in a Box

**Author's Note-** Okay well my poll failed me. If you want you can go see what I mean. for this chapter I decided to go with my gut, and from now on I'll be doing the same for each chapter. I'm not sure if people noticed this but the rating was changed to M a couple of chapters back so heads up!

**Warnings: **This is a warning for this chapter and every other chapter until this story is complete.

*Warning character deaths may occur.

*Warning there will be sexual interactions between two males.

*Warning there may be lots of upcoming OOCness, I apologize for this now.

*Warning there may be strong language.

*Warning there may be violence.

For government/safety reasons I just want to say I am not really planning to break into Radcliff Fort Knox. So don't come after me.

Assorted Feelings in a Box

It's so cold, was the constant thought in Sahar's head. It was like there was ice in his veins that rushed throughout his body with each beat of his heart. If only his heart would stop so the pain would. Should the Pacific Ocean be this freezing during this time of year? Was it just him or was the water like floating in a block of ice? Sahar sucked in a shaky breath and braced himself for the pain. It was right on time. Staying above water was difficult. The darkness at the bottom of the ocean seemed to be dragging him in. Water entered his lungs and every time he tried to cough it out more came in. His body was numb and the only way he knew he was still clinging to the flotation device was the fact that he hadn't sunk yet. His wet hair clung to his face and his vision was obscured. Staying alive was impossible, he reasoned, there was just no way he could keep afloat and giving up looked so easy…

Sahar hadn't noticed it at first, the hand that wrapped itself around his goose bumped covered arm, the hand the seemed to pull him closer to the ship and salvation. He did, however, notice how his head no longer went underwater. It took him a moment, partially because he was still undergoing shock from being in the water and partially because the truth was hard to comprehend, but he realized what was happening. He was being saved. Someone had jumped into the water to save him. Him, a wanna be criminal. Was his life even worth saving? He wanted to laugh but couldn't due to the large amount of water he had inhaled. He wanted to tell the person to let go, that if he died right now he would no longer have to fear his father, and he would no longer have any worries. He would be weightless.

Sahar's numb fingers could no longer grasp the flotation devise and he slipped under the water dragging his rescuer with him. The hand on his arm went away and was replaced with an arm around his waist. He could feel his body lifting up until they both broke the surface of the water. His entire body shuddered. He couldn't take much more of this. His savior seemed to noticed this too and in a strained but encouraging voice said, "Don't worry, we're almost there."

Sahar's brain took a moment to make the connection. The voice was familiar. He knew that voice but a face didn't come to mind, that was until he saw through the strands of his hair. It was Eiji Kikumaru. Someone he had only just met, someone he kidnapped, and someone he already owed a lot to.

Eiji was trying to drag him to the ship but because Sahar didn't float it made the task rather difficult. The acrobats legs kept bumping against and getting tangled together with the other's in his attempt to swim quickly. It went unbeknownst to Sahar though because like the rest of his body his legs had no feeling to them.

Onboard the ship they were preparing to retrieve the two from the water which presented itself to be a difficult task. The distance was too great to just reach down and pull them up so they had to think of an alternative. In the end it was Inui who had came up with the idea to lower a lifeboat into the water so they could pull the two into it then pull the boat up. It would work, but it meant that Eiji had to pull Sahar an even greater distance.

"Can you do it Kikumaru?" Inui called down to the redhead.

The water was too rough and the waves too strong so Eiji couldn't voice a reply. Instead, with the hand that wasn't holding onto Sahar, he gave Inui a thumbs up. It was an okay for the plan. He was a good swimmer and was fairly confident that he could carry Sahar the distance, his only concern was that Sahar wouldn't hold out. He wasn't looking good. The boy's body was shaking and he looked barely conscious. The water was pretty cold, and it didn't help that the already cool night air was added to by gusts of wind. Eiji dug his fingers into Sahar's skin that was only allowed available because the water lifted his shirt up. He hoped the pain would keep Sahar from going lifeless in his arms. Eiji decided to try something different. He began floating on his back and with his one arm already around Sahar used it to pull the boy on top of him. With Sahar's torso resting securely on his chest Eiji risked talking to him. "You need to hang on."

Sahar tried, he really did, but his finger didn't want to respond. He couldn't grab on to Eiji's wet shirt but he could, with some difficulty, position his arms around Eiji's neck . With his wrists crossed, Sahar was as attached to Eiji as he would ever be. When Eiji was sure Sahar wouldn't fall off, he let go. Now he was free to use both of his arms to propel them faster to the lifeboat that was already sitting in the water, with Kaidoh inside, waiting for them. Inui and Takashi were left behind so they could pull the boat back up. Just a few more yards, that's all they needed. Whether by luck or by Eiji's willpower alone they somehow managed to reach Kaidoh.

Eiji helped lift Sahar into Kaidoh's awaiting arms which was made easy because his arms were extra long. Kaidoh carefully placed the redhead down on the wooden seat beside him and went to help Eiji in the boat but the acrobat had already climbed up over the edge himself. Eiji was tired, his stamina had already been all spent up before this ordeal, but now he was exhausted. His arms were aching from the sudden usage of them without the proper warm up and he would surly feel it even more so in the morning. Eiji sat down across from Kaidoh and managed to breath out, "How is he?"

Kaidoh hadn't checked, but now that Eiji asked about him, Sahar's condition seemed to worsen. Sahar was having a hard time breathing and he was shaking so badly he couldn't properly sit up. It didn't help his sitting posture any when Inui and Takashi began hauling the lifeboat up. All three rocked back and forth. It only took a few seconds but it seemed like an eternity to Eiji because with every second that ticked away the chances of Sahar recovering got slimmer and slimmer.

When the boat stopped moving Kaidoh picked Sahar up bridal style and stepped over the gap left between the lifeboat and the ship. Eiji followed closely behind him. Inui took a moment to observe Sahar's health before issuing his orders, "Kawamaru I need you to go get towels and if you can a first aid kit. Kaidoh I need you to set him down, we may need to perform CPR."

Takashi raced off to try and find what he was looking for, the bathroom would be his first destination. Kaidoh kneeled down and placed Sahar's body flat on the ground. Inui bent over the boy and checked his pulse. There was a weak pulse and on top of that Sahar appeared unconscious and had water in his lungs. Inui was not a doctor but logic dictated that CPR was their best option. He tilted Sahar's head back, and opened up his mouth so he could receive air. Inui was about to give the kiss of life to the boy, much to Kaidoh's and Eiji's discomfort, when said boy's eyes fluttered open. Inui hesitated.

Sahar blinked. He wanted to cough, the water in his lungs was like an itch that needed to be scratched. He blinked again. He parted his lips to breath and the air that went in stung a little. Then some unknown instinct that he didn't even know he had kicked in and he rolled onto his stomach, propped himself up, and began the process of coughing is brains out. Not literally.

Takashi came running back with towels in one arm, a red box in another, and a very frantic bodyguard behind him. He handed Eiji a towel and then offered one to Sahar who was still coughing so he couldn't accept it. Akiva stared at his master in horror, "What happened?"

Sahar knew he wouldn't be able to get all the water out so with an unstable voice he tried to reassure the one person who had always stood beside him, "I…" Another fit of coughs. Sahar sat back on his legs and clutched his chest with one hand as he covered his mouth with the other. Once the coughs subsided he tried talking again. "I'm fine."

He was obviously not fine. Sahar was shivering uncontrollably, his teeth chattering to some nameless rhythm. Takashi draped the towel over the redhead's shoulder but to no avail. It seemed to do nothing. Inui noticed how Eiji was beginning to shake as well. "This is no good. We need to get them out of their wet clothing and we need to dry them off."

"We?" Sahar questioned, some life finally returning to his features. He didn't like the sound of people taking off his clothes, it brought up an awkward and unpleasant picture to mind. The only one that undresses him was himself, the only one to see him naked was also himself. Not even Akiva, who had been with him sense he was five, had been allowed to see him totally nude. If he _had _seen him Sahar wasn't aware of it. The boy stood up on wobbly legs. "I don't think so."

Both Inui and Takashi stood to the side of Sahar in case he fell over, and with the way he was standing the chances were likely. Eiji walked over to Sahar. "Want to lead the way to the bathroom or do you want me to?"

Sahar tried laughing but it came out all wrong, more like a wheeze. Sahar grimaced at the foreign sound that passed through his lips. He sounded awful, no wonder Akiva look at him as if he would fall apart at any moment. Suddenly the ground disappeared from beneath his feet. Sahar knew he hadn't collapsed, at least not yet, so why was his vision filled with the night sky now? Sahar prepared himself for the impact that was sure to come, but never did. What was going on? "You're in no condition to walk."

The voice belonged to Kaidoh and Sahar found himself being carried once again bridal style by him. He was used to being carried by Akiva when the situations they got into called for it, so the manhandling was nothing knew, but the fact that it was Kaidoh made the experience different then all the times before. Is it possible to feel safe and still fear for your life at the same time? The thought of Kaidoh triggered a memory inside of him and Sahar reached for his pocket, thankfully it wasn't the one that was pushed against the brunet's body, and pulled out a wet piece of cloth. Kaidoh had already started walking towards the bathrooms along with Eiji. Akiva had wanted to go too but stayed behind to hear the story of what happened. Sahar reached up and tapped Kaidoh on his shoulder. Kaidoh looked down and cocked an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"I wanted to return this to you," Sahar held the green bandana up so Kaidoh could see it. "I'm sorry I got it all wet."

"It's okay." Kaidoh said though he didn't mean in. It wasn't okay that Sahar worried over a bandana more then his own health. It wasn't okay that Sahar had been tossed off the side of this ship. It wasn't okay that that Sahar felt guilty for something that was completely out of his control. Kaidoh grinded his teeth together in silent frustration but realized his anger had no incentive and let it go. "You can keep it."

"Eh?" Sahar began coughing again which knocked him around in Kaidoh's arms. When he was done he frowned. "You don't want it anymore? It'll dry out and once you wash it the fishy smell will go away."

"That's not the point," Kaidoh said stubbornly.

"Then what is?" Sahar sulked.

They arrived in front of the mass bathrooms that was where the crew used the restroom and took showers. Eiji opened the door to allow Kaidoh and Sahar inside. The room was divided down the middle. One side had stalls and urinals, the other had shower heads. The three made their way to the shower side. The floor was made of white tiles, as was the walls, there was a few scattered wooden benches that were placed so people could sit and wash off. It was on one of those that Kaidoh placed Sahar. Kaidoh was almost completely out of the room when he turned back and said, "I'm sure Akiva will be here later with clean clothes."

With that the Viper was gone, leaving the two redheads to shift through their own problems.

---

"And that's what happened." Inui explained it the best he could to Akiva who had listened intently to every word that was said.

"I see." Akiva stuffed his hands into his pockets. "And just where is that man now?"

"In a broom closet two levels down," It was Ryoma's voice. He had chased Chazz into the small room and jammed the doorknob with a chair he borrowed from the dining room.

"So you captured him?" Akiva said with admiration in his voice. "That's incredible!"

Ryoma just shrugged. He was tired and wanted to go back to bed. Besides, if Momoshiro woke up and he wasn't there the older teen would have a field day. Momo was already aware of the fact he was hurt, he didn't need him worried anymore then that.

"There you are," Momoshiro breathed.

Ryoma blinked. Why is it that whenever you don't want something to happen it always happens?

"What is going on here?" Momoshiro looked at everyone's faces. Something had obviously gone down and he had missed it. He jokingly asked, "What did Kaidoh do this time?"

"What was that?" Kaidoh appeared behind Momoshiro. Why was it he was being blamed for something he didn't do? You punch a crime lord in the nose one time and suddenly you're the cause for all the things that go wrong.

"Speak of the snake." Momoshiro turned to Kaidoh. They glared at each other.

"I think it would be best if we all head back to bed." Takashi was going to put the first aid kit away. They hadn't even used it.

"Wait, can I see that?" Momoshiro, momentarily forgetting the Viper, turned his attention on Takashi.

"Sure." Takashi placed the red box into Momoshiro's outstretched hand.

Ryoma knew what the first aid kit was for. It was for him. Before the others could ask Momo why he wanted it Ryoma pulled the taller teen back towards the room they shared with Oishi and Eiji. No one questioned it, they were all pretty tired. It wasn't until they were standing outside their door that gold eyes met violet ones. Momoshiro was the first to speak, "We need to take care of your wounds."

"I know," Ryoma clenched his fists. "Can't it wait tell tomorrow?"

"Ryoma…" Momoshiro frowned.

"Please?" Ryoma broke eye contact. "I'm tired."

Momoshiro's frown intensified but he gave in. There was no way he could treat Ryoma if Ryoma didn't want him to. Of course it would be better if they were treated sooner rather then later but a few hours wouldn't hurt them too much. Would they? "Okay fine, but first thing tomorrow they are getting dressed."

Ryoma smirked. "Fine."

"So what happened tonight?" Momoshiro asked as he opened the door.

"Long story," Ryoma entered the room, careful to not wake up Oishi. "I'll tell you tomorrow."

Ryoma climbed into bed. Momoshiro placed the first aid kit under the bed where he could find it when he woke up. Ryoma scooted over to the wall and allowed Momoshiro to get in. Both snuggled into the blankets trying to get more comfortable. Once Momo was settled in Ryoma scooted a little closer to him. Momo was surprised by the action but welcomed it with open arms. Ryoma stretched his neck out and placed his head on Momoshiro's shoulder. It was way better then any pillow.

---

"So they don't build these things with curtains?" Eiji eyed the walls. Nope, no sign of a curtain anywhere. It was very inconvenient considering they both needed a warm shower. Badly. He didn't mind it so much, he was used to changing into his tennis uniform with his other teammates in the same room. It was Sahar who seemed to be more upset, and he was the one that needed the shower the most.

Sahar was most definitely feeling uncomfortable. His behavior became diffident and he was suddenly self-conscious. He didn't want to take his clothes off, not with Eiji in the same room. The whole thing would give him nightmares. It's not that he didn't like his body, because he did, but he wasn't ready to share it with anyone else. Then there was the fact that Eiji would be naked. Another thing he wanted to avoid. Not that he didn't think Eiji would look nice, in fact it was quite the opposite, but looking at something was different then just imagining it. Not that he did. Imagine it that is. Because he didn't. Sahar's face turned red enough to match his hair.

Eiji wanted to laugh, because Sahar looked rather funny in a cute innocent way, but he held it in so he wouldn't embarrass the boy even more. "I think I have a solution to our problem."

Sahar didn't look over at Eiji, he couldn't, not after the mental images he just received from his own train of thought. "Y-you do?"

"Yeah," Eiji nodded his head enthusiastically. "We can shower with our clothes on, then when we go to change in our dry clothes one of us can stay in here and the other can change in the restrooms."

"That's brilliant," Sahar raised his eyes from the tiled floor.

Eiji turned on one of the showerheads. The water felt nice and even though he was wearing his clothes the warmth seeped through to his skin. "It feels good nyaa!" Eiji saw that Sahar hadn't moved. The acrobat reached out and snaked his arm around one of Sahar's and pulled him under the showerhead.

"Hey!" Sahar had been waiting for his blush to go away but thanks to Eiji being Eiji it had reappeared with reinforcements. Eiji burst into giggles at the sight of Sahar's face. If he held it in any longer he would rip at the seams, in a sense. Sahar looked angry, and embarrassed at the same time.

"I'm sorry nyaa!" Eiji grabbed his stomach with one hand and used the wall to support himself with the other. "It's… it's too funny!"

"Why are you laughing at me?" Sahar ducked his head. This had to be the most embarrassing thing he had ever been though, and sadly he brought most of that embarrassment onto himself.

"You're face," Eiji tried to point at Sahar's face but his finger got a little close and instead poked him in the cheek. This made Eiji laugh harder and he barely managed to get out, "It's all red!"

"Well I can't help it!" Sahar took a step back so Eiji's finger was no longer touching him. He waited a moment for Eiji to stop laughing, but he didn't. Maybe it was an overdose of relief exploding from him after all the stress from earlier. He had a lot to thank Eiji for, after saving his life and all, but this has got to stop. "If you don't stop laughing at me I'll be forced to stop you."

Eiji blinked. Sahar's expression was serious, which made it all the more funnier. His laughter now became hysterical. "Please stop, it's too much!"

That was the last straw. Sahar stopped thinking rationally and tackled Eiji to the tiled floor. After the fact he realized that move had been a really stupid one. They both hit the floor pretty hard. Eiji's laughter had stopped, he was now breathing hard from the lack of air he had gotten while laughing. He hadn't expected Sahar to attack him. Sahar sat up, "Ow."

"What are you complaining about?" Eiji also sat up. "You were on top."

"Well my hands hit the ground pretty hard," Sahar held up his hands to show Eiji how they had turned red. They weren't as red as his face but unlike his face they stung.

"Yeah well my entire back hit the ground." Eiji said, feigning a sore back.

Sahar rolled his eyes. "You're faking that."

"Yeah well it still hurt nyaa!" Eiji stuck out his tongue. "Besides, are you trying to say that it hurt more to be on top then it did on the bottom?"

"Well not entirely but-" Sahar's sentence got stuck in his throat as Eiji returned the previous gesture of hostility with one of his own. Now Eiji had Sahar pinned to the ground by just sitting on his stomach he was careful though and didn't put his full weight down. The boy wasn't very strong, Akiva was the muscle, so Eiji had no trouble keeping him pinned.

"Okay," Sahar said trying to wiggle out from underneath Eiji but it was useless. "I admit that did hurt, now you can get off."

"That's all I wanted." Eiji said satisfied. He let down his guard and didn't notice Sahar bring his leg forward until the foot was planted in his chest. Eiji was kicked back and landed sprawled across the floor, he was now in the range of the shower and was being pelted with water. "That wasn't nice."

"I don't appreciate being sat on." Sahar picked himself up. Eiji looked over at him and giggled, "Your face is red again."

"Can we call a truce?" Sahar beseech. He didn't want to fight Eiji, because the close physical contact made him uneasy, and because he would most likely lose.

"Afraid you might lose?" Eiji teased.

"No," Sahar laughed, this one sounded a little better then the last time. "I know I would."

"Touché, I call a ceasefire," Eiji reached his hand into the air, "Shake on it?"

Sahar reached down and then shook hands with the tennis player. Eiji took that opportunity to pull with all his might and like London's Bridge Sahar came falling down. He hadn't been expecting it, because they had just agreed to stop fighting. Sahar collapsed onto Eiji, and he face planted into his chest. The other's clothes were wet and Sahar had to make sure to not breath through his nose or else water would go up it. Eiji could just make out Sahar's muffled voice, "That was a breach of our treaty!"

"Sorry," Eiji said stroking Sahar's hair out of habit. "You're just so much fun to mess with nyaa!"

"I'm glad you're enjoying this," Sahar didn't move. "Thanks."

"For what?" Eiji looked down at Sahar. "You like me making fun of you? What a strange guy, ne?

"No you dolt," Sahar pulled his face away and looked Eiji in the eyes. "For jumping in the water to save me."

"Oh that?" Eiji rolled his shoulders trying to act humble. "Anyone of us would have jumped in to save you, I just happened to be the fastest."

"Well I'm sure that quickness made all the difference in saving my life." Sahar gazed intently at Eiji. "I owe you my life."

"Doesn't Akiva save your life all the time though?" Eiji was only guessing but usually people who had bodyguards had them for a reason. Akiva seemed like a person who had a lot of experience under his belt.

"Yeah but that's his job, he's paid to do it, so it's different." Sahar was very grateful to Akiva though, no denying that.

"I don't think so." Eiji said, becoming serious. "I think he does it because he really cares about you and doesn't want any harm to befall you."

"Oh?" Sahar looked away from Eiji. "What makes you say that?"

"Well it just seems that he's over protected. He's hired to protect you but he does more then that, and I don't think it's just sucking up to his employer. He really cares about you nyaa." Eiji smiled. "Just like Oishi, remember?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"I still owe you my life though." Sahar said, his eyes once again locked on Eiji's face.

"Your life eh?" Eiji placed his index finger on his lip in a thoughtful manner. "Does that mean you need to save my life?"

"Something like that," Sahar stood up, finally untangling himself from Eiji. "Either that or I suppose I could do a few favors for you."

"Are you saying your life is only equal to a couple of favors?" Eiji also stood up. Sense it seemed they were done with the water he turned the shower head off. Save water save the Earth right?

"Well they would be huge favors I suppose." Sahar deadpanned. Eiji sure knew how to milk the saying.

"Like what?" Eiji asked out of curiosity, or just to tease Sahar more. For a crime lord Sahar was very lenient he thought. Eiji still wasn't aware of Sahar's past, so he didn't know that Sahar wasn't the real crime lord but his father was.

"I don't know. It would be a favor to benefit you, so you would have to come up with it, so why ask me?" Sahar was cold again, the reason being the water in his clothes was starting to cool off.

"I don't know, I guess I was wondering what you were willing to offer." Eiji shrugged.

"What is that suppose to mean?" Sahar said, momentarily forgetting to breath.

"Not sure," Eiji grabbed his towel. "But I liked the sound of it."

"What is that suppose to mean?" Sahar blinked. Was there still water in his ears? Was he only hearing what he wanted to hear? Wait, he didn't mean that.

"Once again I have no idea." Eiji walked over to Sahar and offered him a towel. "But I'd like to find out."

"Wait," Sahar accepted the towel. "You want to find out what you meant, or you want to find what I'm willing to offer?"

"Who knows?" Eiji was only a hair's breath away now but neither seemed to notice this fact.

"Why are you suddenly so cryptic?" Sahar didn't understand anything that Eiji was saying anymore. Who knew the acrobat could be co confusing? Oishi probably did. What a crappy time to think of Eiji's doubles partner.

"Because it's fun to tease you nyaa!" Eiji smiled mischievously.

"So all this has been you teasing me?" Sahar gripped his towel tighter. He did not appreciate being toyed with.

"Maybe," Eiji walked more towards the back wall and began stripping off layers. When his shirt was over his head he added, "Or maybe not."

Sahar gulped. "I'm going to go dry off." Sahar walked away from Eiji and into the restroom half of the bathroom. He stated with his shirt and worked his way down. When he was only left in his boxers he began drying off his body. He didn't appear to have sustained any injuries when he was thrown into the water but he excepted there would be bruises on him in the morning.

All the door's hinges on the ship had been perfectly oiled so it was no wonder Sahar didn't here the door open up, but the person who opened the door sure noticed him. He wanted to say something before Sahar looked up, or else the situation would become worse, though he could just leave but he had to drop the clothes off. "Uh, excuse me."

Sahar froze. He had been drying off his legs so he couldn't see who had just entered the room but immediately knew who it was. He didn't look up but continued drying himself off. "I thought you said Akiva would bring us clean clothes."

"I did." Kaidoh walked all the way into the room. In his arms he had clothes that Akiva had given him for Sahar, and by using Inui's data book they were able to pick out clothes that would fit Eiji as well.

"So where is he?" Sahar finished off his thighs and moved to his stomach.

"He had to take care of the people who attacked you and Kikumaru." Kaidoh was trying to avoid looking at the redhead but there wasn't anything interesting in the room to attract his attention. Sahar wore golden boxers with silver swirls printed on them, which was totally unforeseen by Kaidoh, he would have thought they would have been red or black. Not that he was looking but it was better then openly staring at Sahar's naked flesh.

"What did he do to them?" Sahar finally looked up leaving the rest of his wet body to be air dried. He knew what Akiva was like when he got angry. When Akiva was angry bad things happen. Tonight Akiva wasn't angry though, he was pissed, which was twice as scary as angry. People got killed when Akiva was pissed. Even though that Chazz guy and his friends had attacked Eiji and him he didn't think that should result in death. No one dies on his ship tonight. Or ever. Hopefully.

"He said he was taking them to the brig," Kaidoh tried to recall what Akiva said, "It was either that or send them to Davy Jones Locker Room, but he said you wouldn't like that."

Good old Akiva, always knows how he's feeling. Sahar had to wonder though, they didn't have a brig, so where was Akiva taking them? His thoughts were interrupted when Kaidoh shoved a fistful of clothes at him. "Here."

"Thank you," Sahar tried not to be embarrassed but he felt uncomfortable as Kaidoh eyeballed him. It wasn't a skin crawling kind of uneasiness, more like a light burning sensation that was warm but it also made him feel sick to his stomach. Or something like that.

Eiji popped into the room, his towel wrapped around his waist, the rest of his clothes discarded on the floor. "Ah, I thought I heard Kaidoh."

"Catch." Kaidoh tossed the wad of clothes at the acrobat. With his keen eyesight and fast reflexes Eiji was able to catch everything before it hit the ground.

"Is that all?" Eiji asked, raising his eyebrows at Kaidoh.

"Hm?" Kaidoh looked over at Eiji. "Yeah."

"Well are you going to just stand around ogling Sahar or is there a reason you're still here nyaa?" Eiji giggled though it seemed a bit forced.

"I was not!" Kaidoh instantaneously replied before he stormed out of the room with a blush sprinkled over his cheeks. Eiji was an idiot. He was not ogling Sahar, he hadn't even been looking at him when Eiji said it, and now surly Sahar would think he's some pervert. Which he wasn't. This was insane! Kaidoh decided it was time for bed. No use staying up if all he would be doing is getting falsely accused.

"If he didn't have something to hide then why did he run away?" Eiji tilted his head to the side in contemplation. "Oh well, nyaa!" Eiji went back into his half of the room and got dressed. He now wore light brown cargo pants, and a red shirt with a horizontal black stripe across his chest. It was very simple but it was a comfortable fit. He also had socks and tennis shoes to put on.

Sahar got dressed in one of his outfits that had to have come from the chest in his room. He pulled up his black dress pants and did up their double buttons. He slipped on a short sleeved white shirt and buttoned it up as well. Next came the chest piece that was black and tied in the back by a red ribbon that crisscrossed and ended near the small of his back with a red bow. It was something he had made personally for him. Once his white socks and black shoes were on his attire was complete.

"Can I come out now?" Eiji called.

"Your timing is perfect," Sahar called back. "Which makes me slightly suspicious as to how that happened."

"You're just being paranoid." Eiji laughed.

"Yeah," Sahar bit his lip.

"What's wrong?" Eiji's voice sounded concerned.

"Oh it's nothing. I just realized I should have put my pajamas on sense I'm going to bed anyways." Sahar laughed. "I'm really sleepy so I guess it doesn't matter."

The two walked out of the mass restroom. Eiji nodded his head. "Well goodnight Sahar."

"Goodnight." Sahar began walking towards the bedroom he shared with Fuji and Kaidoh.

"Oh Sahar?" Eiji stopped him with his voice. "Try not to get into anymore trouble tonight, okay?"

Eiji was inside his room before Sahar could reply. Well it wasn't like he planned to get thrown off the boat.

The ship was finally silent with everyone now asleep. Akiva had left the torturing for tomorrow and had called it a night. Takashi and Inui had gone back to bed to find Tezuka still sound asleep. It was now two hours until sunrise, almost an entire night had come and gone.

---

Sahar was rudely awakened. He had been dreaming about robbing some ancient pharos's tomb when he felt his body assaulted from out of no where. He was being violently shaken. He could almost feel his brain rattle around in his head. His eyes forced themselves open. "What the hell?"

"Good morning nyaa!" Eiji said cheerfully considering he had only gotten four hours of sleep. His clothes were slightly wrinkled and his hair was tousled but considering the events of last night he seemed overly too bright and cheerful. He was like that pink energizer bunny. He kept going… and going… and going.

"I don't have a clock, so I don't know what time it is, but it is was too early to be getting up." Sahar tried to cover his face with his pillow but Eiji prevented that from happening by latching onto the pillow himself.

"I don't think so," Eiji purred, Sahar assumed it was him trying to impersonate a cat again, which he seemed to like to do a lot. "You need to get up now."

"And why in the world would I need to do that for?" Sahar frowned. He was not a morning person and wasn't totally sure what he just said made sense. He owned the ship, he had no job that he needed to do, as far as he was concerned he could sleep the day away. Why ruin such a beautiful thing by getting up?

"I want to eat something," Eiji said, shaking Sahar's arm.

"Then go eat something," Sahar mumbled, trying to regain his REM sleep.

"I don't know where the kitchen is," Eiji pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. "Besides you would be doing me a small favor."

"A _small _favor?" Sahar sat up. "You are impossible! I'm beginning to wonder how Oishi puts up with you."

"He sends me off to bother someone else." Eiji skipped to the bedroom door.

"So I'm like a scapegoat for him?" Sahar noticed both Fuji and Kaidoh were no longer in the room. When had they left?

"Something like that." Eiji opened the door. "Hurry up slowpoke!"

Sahar reached under his pillow and pulled out the green bandana. Kaidoh didn't want it back so now he was stuck with it. It was a pretty shade of green though, and went well with his eyes. He made the piece of cloth into a rectangle and wrapped it around his neck and tied it off with a loose knot. There, now he was ready to go and start the day.

---

"Oh my, Echizen, this is horrible." Fuji said as he helped Momoshiro treat Ryoma's wounds. He was still in the nurse's outfit and was going to change out of it and into the clothes he was given after he did this last job. He was wrapping gauze around Ryoma's left arm as Momoshiro tackled the right one. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

Momoshiro answered for him, "He was being stubborn and didn't want anyone to worry over him."

"That's so like him." Fuji agreed.

"Don't talk as if I'm not here," Ryoma mumbled.

"There, we're all done." Fuji wiped his brow. "Mission complete! I'm going to return the first aid kit now to it's rightful place."

"Sounds good." Momoshiro gave Ryoma a quick look over to make sure they got everything.

"Don't forget breakfast has already been served in the mess hall. You should eat before it's all gone." Fuji reminded them before he slipped out of the room.

---

"So you said you were hungry?" Sahar was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The two redheads were now in the smaller of the two kitchens, this one was Sahar's personal one. The fridge was stocked up with all his favorite drinks and foods. The kitchen was rather small. When you enter the room it's just a long rectangle. On the left wall was the stove and fridge made of stainless steel and there was a pantry. There was a sink and some counter space on the back wall with cabinets on the left and right side of the sink. On the right was nothing but open space, and in the very center was an island covered in black marble like the rest of the counters. It looked rather expensive but had no personal touched to it.

"I don't spend much time here," Sahar explained when Eiji seemed to notice the lack of life in the room.

"I can see that." Eiji ran his hand across the island. It was smooth and cool to his touch.

"So what did you want to eat?" Sahar wasn't really hungry himself, he had odd eating habits and tended to eat more when the sun was way high in the sky. He couldn't explain it but he figures it has something to do with his childhood.

"I already ate." Eiji said absently.

"Then why did you drag me here?" Sahar frowned.

"Because I wanted to cash in on one of those favors." Eiji turned to Sahar and smiled. "I hope you don't mind."

"Eh, so soon? Well it doesn't matter to me, but what does your favor have to do with my kitchen?" Sahar joined Eiji by the island. "You don't want to see how many pickles I can stuff in my mouth do you? I've done it once before and never again will I do it."

Eiji laughed, "No it has nothing to do with pickles."

"Okay, then go ahead, ask away." Sahar thought about it for a moment. "So does this count as a small favor or one of the big-"

Eiji grabbed Sahar's shoulder and pulled him forward, sealing their lips and stopping Sahar from finishing his sentence. He pressed in hard, his dry cracked lips against Sahar's dry smooth ones. Sahar had been overly surprised by the action and his brain seemed to stop working. He was flabbergasted and the realization that Eiji was kissing him hadn't sunk in yet. Eiji, encouraged by the fact the other didn't pull away, ran his tongue across Sahar's bottom one, moistening the kiss making it all the more juicier. He didn't try to deepen the kiss though and just as soon as it started it ended.

Sahar's eyes were glazed over, a blush on his cheeks, and his fingers immediately went up to touch his lips. "Did… did that just happen?"

"You think you just imagined that happening?" Eiji laughed.

"It wouldn't be the first time." Sahar confessed.

"Oh?"

---

Momoshiro was sitting beside Ryoma at a round table. It was one of many that was placed around the mess hall. It was covered in a white tablecloth and had a bunch of seashells as the centerpiece. Ryoma was messing around with his eggs. He was already full. "Hey Takeshi?"

"Yeah?" Momoshiro was buttering another piece of toast, this one would make it his fourth piece total.

"What are we?" Ryoma asked as he stabbed the yolk of one of his egg and the yellow goop spilled out.

"Human?" Momoshiro said immediately then paused. "Wait, what do you mean?"

"Us, what are we?" Ryoma looked to his left to eye his table companion.

"To each other?"

"Yeah."

"Well…" Momoshiro tried not to sound too hopeful. "… I was thinking the title boyfriend fits."

"So we're dating?" Ryoma pushed the egg across his plate, making an even bigger mess.

"Only if you want to!" Momoshiro waited a moment. "Do you?"

"Mada mada dane." Ryoma said, a smirk on his face.

"What kind of an answer is that?" Momoshiro scowled. "I want a yes or no! It's no fair if you know how I feel about you but I don't know how you feel about me."

"If only this ship had a tennis court, then we could play a match for the answer." Ryoma sighed wistfully. "Oh well."

"Just tell me," Momoshiro pleaded.

Ryoma looked Momoshiro in the eyes. "Would I really have asked the question if I didn't have any feelings for you?"

"Oh…"

---

"Eiji… I think I like you." Sahar said bashfully, he was speaking through his hands because they were trying to cover his face.

"You think you do?" Eiji leaned over the island. "Not sure nyaa?"

"No, well I…" Sahar had never had a crush on someone before, Eiji was his first. That had also just now been his first kiss. Nothing like a double whammy to start off the morning with. "I think it's love but I'm not sure. It's a new feeling that's hard to describe."

"So you enjoyed the kiss?" Eiji poked Sahar in the forehead playfully.

"Yes!" Sahar's blush was now at maximum power. There was no way he could get redder then he was now.

"In that case it doesn't count as one of the favors." Eiji cheered.

"Wait what?" Sahar gaped at the acrobat. That was totally unfair, though he did enjoy the kiss, but that wasn't the point!

"If you leave your mouth open like that I might be tempted to put something in it." Eiji said very seriously. He watched Sahar stutter and then snapped him mouth closed. It was cute how he acted. He was a lot different then Oishi. He acted so innocent and so inexperienced, it was obvious this was his first time doing anything even slightly sexual. Only one kiss and the boy was flustered.

"What about Oishi?" Sahar asked dumbly. Wasn't Eiji with Oishi? They were double partners and were very close. While doing research Sahar learned they were called the golden pair, didn't that mean they were perfect together?

"What about him?" Eiji shrugged. "We're close, and we work well together on a tennis court, but that doesn't mean we're a couple."

"But I though-"

"Well you thought wrong nyaa!"

---

"I can't believe no one bothered to wake me up during all that." Tezuka was grumbling. He had heard from Takashi about the night before.

"Yeah, join the club." Fuji sighed. "We missed out on all the fun."

The two were walking around the innards of the ship, exploring it for lack of anything better to do. The place was huge and they were pretty lost as is so they figured it wouldn't hurt to keep going.

"It's a good thing no one got too hurt." Fuji commented.

"Yeah." Tezuka pushed his glasses up. They had too many casualties already, they didn't need even more. Fuji told him about Ryoma who had been added to the list.

"You seem upset," Fuji noticed. "Do you miss the nurse's uniform?"

"Hardly," Tezuka replied bitterly, then more softly said, "I like you better in pants anyways."

"Is that so?" Fuji looked down at the jeans he was wearing. "Why is that?"

---

Sahar was pouting. He didn't understand the part about Oishi and now the kiss before seemed wrong even though he had liked it. Eiji saw how Sahar was going through inner turmoil, it was written all over his face, so he decided to clear the other's mind. Eiji closed the gap between their lips once more, this time Sahar was more prepared for it. Eiji placed one hand behind Sahar's head, his other hand found it's place on the small of his back. Eiji's fingers got tangled in the bow as he pushed Sahar closer to himself. Sahar's arms didn't know where to go at first but eventually they made their way around Eiji's neck. They both had their eyes closed, completely lost in each other. Eiji, once again ran his tongue across Sahar's bottom lip then with his teeth gave it a suck and a nibble. Sahar let out a soft moan and pressed his body closer to Eiji's. The moan allowed Eiji access into Sahar's mouth, which he took. Sahar seemed surprised and opened his eyes. Eiji tried to reassure Sahar by grasping onto him tighter and by entangling his finger's into his red hair. Sahar started to relax and shut his eyes. The kiss was one of tasting and testing. Their tongues moved against each other's in a rhythmic dance, and Eiji who was the one with more skills took the lead.

---

Inui was busy researching at the computer Akiva allowed him to use. He was doing more research on Fort Knox. He was checking out its security system. So far he's learned that their security system is like the ADT security system. It was highly probable that there are land minds in the ground, machine guns that pop up from the ground, that there are seismic detectors being used, and that was only the beginning. There were all the cameras that watched for movement and sound and because of how things are set up the people inside only had to watch one screen that showed everything. There could be invisible trip wires around the building which would be near impossible to see. Cars couldn't even loiter on the road or else the military would send them away. Even if they could get past all the traps there was the biometric security system waiting for them on the inside. It checks the person who is trying to enter to make sure they are allowed inside. It looks at their voice, thumb print, and the depth of the person's face. Even with plastic surgery there are parts of your face that can't be changed and the system would catch it. Inui rubbed his eyes. All this research done and all of it was just speculation.

---

Eiji broke the kiss to allow for both of them to breath though from the expression on Sahar's face it was safe to say the boy wouldn't mind drowning in a kiss. Eiji removed his hand from Sahar's hair, brought it under Sahar's left arm, and brought it back up to his neck. Eiji frowned. "What's this?"

Sahar felt Eiji tug at the bandana, "Oh that's Kaidoh's… I mean _my _bandana."

"Can I take it off?" Eiji asked, already tugging at the knot.

"Well I…" Sahar swallowed.

"You don't want me to?" Eiji stopped and retracted his hands. He cupped Sahar's face and kissed him on the forehead. "We can stop if you want to nya."

"No!" Sahar's hand flew up to his neck. "I just…"

"I understand." And he did. In that moment Sahar realized a couple of important things, the most important of all was that Sahar didn't really like him, he was just insanely attracted to him. Even though Eiji knew this he didn't want to stop because he was just as equally attracted to Sahar. Teenagers and testosterone, what can you do? Eiji took that moment to lift Sahar onto the island counter. "We can take it slow."

---

"I wasn't expecting this to be the reason why," Fuji deadpanned.

"What did you think I meant?" Tezuka gave a quizzical look at Fuji.

"Something more… I don't know… but defiantly not this."

Tezuka and Fuji had done warm up stretches and were running around the deck of the ship now. There were a lot of men in black they had to avoid which added to the challenge. Of course Fuji should have know it would have something to do with tennis, it was Tezuka after all, but he had hoped. Now that he no longer wore the nurse's uniform he could run properly.

"Ah, Tezuka and Fuji!" Takashi called them over. "What are you guys doing?"

"Exercising," Fuji supplied. "Just because we're on a boat doesn't mean we should slack off on our training."

"So we don't get a vacation?" Takashi sounded disappointed.

"Do you want to run 20 laps?" Tezuka asked.

"No, not really." Takashi frowned.

"In that case run 30." Tezuka snapped.

"But I-"

"40."

Takashi went running off at that. It was so unfair but he couldn't complain or else he would get more laps.

"Saa, that wasn't very nice." Fuji smiled.

"Let's keep going." Tezuka started off again.

"Whatever you say captain!" Fuji followed along beside Tezuka.

---

There were footsteps coming closer and closer. Eiji and Sahar broke apart. Sahar slid off the island. Eiji quickly spoke up, "Quick, we shouldn't be seen together like this."

That brought up a lot of questions like why not, but Sahar didn't voice them at the moment. He opened the pantry up. "Here get inside."

Eiji slipped into the pantry and Sahar had only a moment to fix himself before Akiva, his bodyguard, strode into the room. Akiva greeted his master. "Good morning Sahar, it's good to see you're up. How are you today?"

"Hello Akiva," Sahar tried to talk in his normal voice. "I'm well. You?"

"Just fine. I've properly dealt with the men from last night. They claim they acted on their own so there doesn't appear to be an uprising in the future. So why are you in the kitchen?" Akiva noticed how his young master's face was red, his hair ruffled, and saw how his clothes looked slightly off. Something had happened in here. "Better yet what were you doing in the kitchen to get you to look like that?"

"I… uh…" Sahar's mind drew a blank.

Akiva walked farther into the kitchen and got an even better view of Sahar. There was a word used to describe how he looked, it was aroused. "Master…?"

"Well you see I…" Sahar started backing away from his bodyguard, he didn't want him to noticed the fact that he had an erection, one that he himself just realized he had.

Akiva kept walking forward until he had Sahar trapped between the sink and himself. "Sahar I don't think I've ever seen you like this before. I'm curious, what made you like this?"

Sahar blushed. If Akiva found out what he had been doing would he get mad at him? He would most certainly be disappointed. Sahar's breath suddenly hitched in his throat when he felt the unmistakable touch of Akiva's finger's tracing the slight bulge in his pants. What in the world?

"I must admit I'm jealous because it wasn't me who did this to you." Akiva rubbed him thumb across the length of Sahar's shaft and even though cloth separated them the feeling was still sensational. Sahar couldn't stop the moan from escaping him but right afterwards he bit down on his lip to prevent something like that from happening again.

Sahar didn't know what was going on, but he had to explain where the erection came from, or else Akiva might go snooping around and find Eiji. "There's nothing to be jealous of, I was… I was just masturbating, that's all!"

"In the kitchen? Akiva looked down at the redhead.

Sahar blushed, "I used fruit?"

"You don't sound too sure of yourself." Akiva observed. He got down on his knees but still had Sahar pinned against the sink. "You know, if you wanted to have an orgasm I would have been more then happy to help."

"What are you talking about?" Sahar gasped. "I've never had any sexual contact with any of my men!"

"I know." Akiva was looking up at Sahar but his hands were gripping the younger's waist. "You could make an acceptation though, couldn't you?"

"For you?" Sahar asked just as Akiva's hand moved to his inner thigh. The redhead gasped and quickly covered his mouth with his hands.

"I love you." Akiva said in a husky voice then openly placed a kiss on Sahar's crouch where the tip of his member should be. This made the boy gasp out, pant, and made his legs quaver. "I've always loved you but ever sense we brought the tennis team onboard I've realized the importance of expressing my feelings to you."

"I… I love you too but-" Sahar stopped talking when he noticed Akiva fingering the buttons on his pants. "Like a brother, I love you like a brother, or something like that."

"I thought that's how you felt," Akiva said sadly.

Sahar let out a sigh of relief.

"I can make you change your mind though, just give me a chance and you wont be sorry." Akiva undid the buttons and pulled down the zipper.

"Akiva I order you to stop this!" Sahar said, he was beginning to sound desperate.

"What if I don't want to?" Akiva pulled Sahar's pants down until they gathered at the boy's ankles. Today he was wearing green boxer shorts with purple butterflies printed on them. Akiva had picked them out for Sahar himself.

"I don't want this though!" Sahar tried to push Akiva away but it was like an ant trying to move a boulder. Impossible.

"You're so hard though, you'll feel better if I release you." Akiva reached up to the elastic band that held the boxers up.

Kaidoh walked into the kitchen to get a drink. He was thirsty after running around the ship, he had been surprised to see Fuji, Tezuka, and Takashi doing the same. He had to ask a man wearing a black uniform where the kitchen was and this is where the directions led him. When he entered the room he immediately noticed Akiva and Sahar but chose to ignore them. It seemed the best option. It was their private business but it would be even more awkward if he turned back now. So there he went sauntering up to the fridge, opening the door, and pulled out a Root Bear soda. Akiva had stopped when Kaidoh had entered the room and Sahar took the chance to pull up his pants. Kaidoh was leaving the room when Sahar realized this could be his only chance to escape.

"Kaidoh!" Sahar called, his voice still not fully recovered.

Kaidoh turned around, cringing inside, and looked over to where the boy was. Their eyes met across the room and Kaidoh could see fear and confusion in Sahar's green irises. He couldn't leave him. He didn't know what was going on but obviously nothing good would come from it if he left him. Kaidoh walked back over to the fridge and grabbed another soda. He walked over to Sahar, handed him the soda, then grabbed him by the arm and pulled. Akiva allowed Sahar to be taken away from his hold, there was no reason to cause a scene. The bodyguard watched as Kaidoh dragged Sahar behind him all the way out of the room.

---

Kaidoh and Sahar dangled their feet off the side of the boat and rested their arms between the railing's bars. Sahar was currently sobbing into his soda can. "I'm so confused! I think I have my first crush on Eiji but then Akiva goes and confesses his love to me. I admit his actions were scaring me but it didn't feel wrong either. I used to think of him as a big brother, but now I'm not sure. And the worst part of it all is that the only people I can go and talk to about it are the people I'm having problems with!"

"So why are you telling me?" Kaidoh was a bit annoyed that Sahara said the only people he could go to talk to was Eiji and Akiva but here he was talking to him.

"I… I don't know." Sahar wiped his eyes on his sleeve and scooted away from the railing. "Have you ever been in love with someone?"

Kaidoh and Sahar share a look.

Kaidoh suddenly crawled on top of Sahar. He pinned the older boy's arms down and placed one leg on each side of his waist. Kaidoh stared down at Sahar, and Sahar started up at Kaidoh. The Viper made no move to do anything, Sahar had already gone through one traumatic experience today, he didn't need another. They stayed like that for a few minutes, neither saying anything, until finally Kaidoh spoke. "I see you're wearing the bandana."

Sahar's heart jumped. "Ye-yeah."

"It goes good with your eyes." Viper noted.

"I thought that too!" Sahar exclaimed. "I guess great minds think alike."

"Sure." Kaidoh released his grip on Sahar's wrists and instead placed his hands on the side of Sahar's head. "If you're having love problems I advise you go talk to Inui."

"Inui?" Sahar wrinkled his nose. "Why him? He doesn't seem like the type to be good with that sort of thing."

"Trust me, his data will surprise you." Kaidoh got off of Sahar and helped him up, both their cans of soda were already forgotten.

"Will you come with me?" Sahar asked once he was standing on his own feet. "I kind of don't want to be alone right now."

"Are you really planning on breaking into Radcliff Fort Knox?" Kaidoh asked the question that seemed rather random but he had been thinking about it for awhile now.

"Yes." Sahar said it with determination. "That is why I brought all of you here, that is my goal."

"Okay," Kaidoh began walking off towards where Inui was researching.

"Okay what?" Sahar chased after him.

"Okay I'll go with you." Kaidoh waited until Sahar matched his pace. "And okay I'll help you break into the vault."

_To be continued…_

**Author's Note- **Okay I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written and I'm sorry Sahar was the main focus point of it. For those of you who hate him or dislike him it may be hard to continue reading this story but I assure you there will be plenty of Fuji**x**Tezuka, Momoshiro**x**Ryoma, and crime in there. Face it though, Sahar plays a big role, and it just can't be helped.


	18. Chapter 18 Hormonal Haywire

Hormonal Haywire

When Sahar and Kaidoh located Inui he had long since abandoned his research on the Gold Vault and had begun doing what he did best to relax himself. Making strange concoctions that he liked to pass off as "juice". His team is rather dubious of his "juices" and you wouldn't catch any of them willingly in the vicinity of that stuff unless their life depended on it. Maybe not even then. At last though there was Kaidoh, not even tied and gagged, patiently standing by waiting for the mad scientist to notice them. Not to save his life, but maybe for a certain adorable "crime lord" with red hair and green eyes. Yeah, maybe then.

"Excuse me," Sahar cleared hit throat trying to get the other's attention. "Just what _are_ you doing?"

Inui looked up from the table where lab equipment was scattered about. There was a Bunsen burner, test tubes, and tongs among other things. He pulled his goggles up onto his forehead and wiped the sweat off his brow with his forearm.

"I think the better question would be where did you get all that stuff," Kaidoh commented unenthusiastically.

"Hello there," Inui said pleasantly. "Akiva brought we this stuff earlier at my request. I'm making health drinks. We'll need something to keep our energy up while robbing the vault."

At the mention of his bodyguard's name Sahar inwardly cringed. With recent events still running through his mind he needed a distraction, not a reminder. Kaidoh, who was by his side, snorted, "It'll more likely take us out before the military has a chance at us."

"Is it really that bad?" Sahar looked at the frothy brown liquid. To him it seemed perfectly harmless. In fact it even resembled pop.

"Would you like to try some?" Inui asked holding out a beaker of the stuff. "It's very healthy for you."

Sahar was about to accept when he gave a sideways glance at Kaidoh who looked sick to his stomach. "Uh, no thank you, I think I'll have to pass this time."

Sahar looked over the items when he noticed a beaker filled with a red liquid, "What's that?"

"A failure," Inui took off his glasses to massage his temples. "I was trying to create a drink to cure seasickness but it didn't work."

"Seasickness?" Sahar frowned. "There's something like that already invented though. At least I thought there was."

"There is." Inui confirmed, "But I wanted this one to make the consumer feel more energetic as well as not sick."

"So it didn't do anything?" Kaidoh ask, curiosity getting the better of him.

"Not exactly," Inui returned his glasses to his face. "It did something alright but not what I wanted it to do."

Sahar and Kaidoh shared a look before looking at Inui. Together they asked, "Well what did it do?"

---

"No more, I'm throwing in the towel!" Fuji gasped as he slid to the wood floor "exhausted".

"You need to work on building up your stamina," Tezuka informed him as he lingered nearby.

"It's not my stamina that's the problem," Which was only a half truth, "It's keeping up with you that I need to work on."

"So you're saying it's my fault?" Tezuka raised an eyebrow at the brunet.

"Well…" Fuji trailed off. "Maybe if you slowed down."

"You need to work on keeping up." Tezuka insisted, then as an after thought added, "We should get this out of the way now so when you're playing tennis you play with your full potential."

"I don't already do so?" Fuji stood up so he could face Tezuka directly.

"There's always room for improvement."

"So how do we go about increasing my stamina?"

Tezuka cocked his head to the side, "We should also work on your flexibility and strength."

"Solution?" Fuji asked.

---

"Well I wasn't sure at first, because Akiva ran off so quickly afterward-"

"You made him drink that stuff?" Sahar gasped appalled.

"He wanted to be helpful,"

"Wouldn't it have been more accurate to use it on someone who was seasick?" Kaidoh casually asked.

Inui paused, "Well that doesn't matter now because that's not what it does."

"Inui! I don't like waiting in suspense." Sahar rolled his eyes. "Can't you tell us what it does?"

"I used it on one of the fish in your tank-"

"My fish?" Sahar went bug eyed.

"It's over there in that fishbowl, you can see the results for yourselves."

Sahar raced to where a tiny round bowl was placed. It had colored rocks of reds and blues on the bottom, some fake plants, and a castle. In the bowl were two guppies of about equal size.

"They're fish." Kaidoh stated the obvious.

"Notice anything else?"

Because they were his fish Sahar felt that he should be able to tell. They were their normal color. They didn't grow any extra eyes. They seemed normal. Inui walked over to his side, his eyes still level with the fishbowl Sahar asked, "Okay I give. What happened?"

"Congratulations, you're a grandparent."

"Huh?" Sahar looked up surprised. "I'm a what? I don't have any kids!"

"One of your guppies laid eggs."

Sahar looked back into the bowl. Sure enough on the very bottom between one of the plastic plants and another was a clump of round eggs. "Oh!"

"What has that got to do with your experiment?" Kaidoh asked, not seeing any connection between the two.

---

Tezuka and Fuji were currently occupying one of the three lifeboats. It had been somewhat of a struggle to get in because it had a tarp and was suspended a foot away from the boat but the two managed just fine.

"Why a lifeboat?" Fuji asked as Tezuka's warm breath tickled the skin of his neck while his fingers danced over the buttons of the genius's shirt, slowly undoing them. "Why not one of the bedrooms?"

"Because," Tezuka breathed in his ear sending waves of pleasure throughout his entire body. "Someone might walk in on us."

"What about a closet?"

Tezuka stopped at the last button which was at the very bottom, already Fuji's abdomen and torso were showing nicely, to look him in the eyes, "Are you serious?"

Fuji chuckled and shook his head 'no', his hair brushed against his bare shoulders where the shirt was starting to slip down, "I'm sorry, I'm just a little nervous."

"Of being caught?"

"Well there's that and then there's… what we're doing."

"Oh." Tezuka pulled back, removing himself from the other.

"I didn't say to stop!" Fuji sat up a bit prepared to reach out to the other.

"I'm just taking off my glasses." Tezuka pulled off the spectacles and set them on the one bench that Fuji hadn't been leaning against. He looked down at the other boy and smirked. "You're not very subtle, are you?"

Fuji pouted to an extent, his eyes had been wide open since they stepped into the tiny boat and now they regarded Tezuka with an unknown emotion, "I've been subtle long enough, besides, I'm worried at any moment now I'll wakeup."

Fuji broke out into a wide grin at Tezuka's reaction to what he had just said. He wasn't sure if he had ever seen him wear such an expression. Without another moment's thought he reached out, grabbing Tezuka by the collar, and pulled him into a chaste kiss. He was going to pull away when Tezuka decided to deepen the kiss by wrapping his arms around the smaller's frame and pulling him closer.

---

"Well the moment I returned the one fish back into it's bowl, where moments before it had been in a smaller beaker of my juice, it began the mating ritual with this other one."

"It probably thought it was a gonner and was just so happy to be alive." Kaidoh stepped away. He had seen enough of this nonsense. "I'm out of here."

Sahar's voice which had dropped to a whisper stopped the Viper in his tracks. The redhead's tone took on a chilling demeanor and with that it made Kaidoh change his opinion of Sahar. Not necessarily in a bad way, but now Kaidoh would never make the mistake of underestimating him, and he would never purposely anger him for fear of his vengeance. Just five little words. "So it's a love potion?"

It sounded like Sahar was planning to use it for pure evil, if only to Kaidoh's ears.

"Excuse me?" Inui had hear him but was thrown off by the question.

"It gave my guppy the desire to mate." Sahar frowned. "But I don't have any females. Both of those are males. And besides that guppies don't lay eggs they lay fry and it would take longer then a few hours or how ever long it was to have them."

Sahar dipped a hand into the fishbowl and pulled out the cluster of the eggs. "Inui, care to tell me why you tried passing this caviar off as the spawn on my guppies?"

Inui shuffled his feet and made a point of not making eye contact with Sahar.

"I want to know what in god's name is going around here. Is everyone off their rocker!?" Sahar set the eggs down on the table and stood placing his hands on his hips. "I don't like being lied to and you must be a bloody idiot if you think I'll stand for this. I want the truth. Now."

Inui sighed. "I'm sorry Sahar, for experimenting on your guppies without asking."

"I don't care about that what I-"

"Because of the juice one of them is dead."

"-oh." Sahar blinked. "Don't feel too bad, I have lots of fish, not like it was a dog or a cat or anything like that. So what happened to it?"

"Well when I put the tested guppy back in it tried to court the other guppy."

"But the other would have been a male as well." Sahar said dumbfounded.

"Didn't stop it from trying. At first I thought it was fighting the other one, but the way it was going about doing it… well either way it ended up killing the other one."

"So why did you lie?"

"I didn't want you to be upset that your fish was dead."

"I see." Sahar was happy that he wasn't being lied to anymore. It seemed Inui was grieving over the lost fish more then he was. He really was a nice guy. "Your conclusion on the experiment?"

"I suppose it's like a love potion, sending the drinker into a lust filled craze that's focused on the next person they see." Inui looked into his notebook, viewing the data. "I can't confirm any of that with only one experiment, on an animal at that, so your guess is as good as mine."

"Didn't you say you had Akiva drink some first?" Kaidoh asked, realization dawning on him.

"Correct," Inui caught on. "You don't think?"

Sahar swallowed his saliva, "He already did."

"Really?" Inui adjusted his glasses. "Same results?"

"I'll say." Sahar laughed dryly. "So all that was because of your drink? Does it ever wear off?"

"I'm not sure…" Inui was scribbling stuff down. "Considering how much Akiva consumed, and how much time has passed…"

"Yes?"

"Do you think his reaction was extreme, somewhere in the middle, or mild?"

"For Akiva that was extreme but… I'm not sure." Sahar bit his lip in thought.

"Would you say he showed restraint?"

"I- I guess he did. A little." Sahar imagined what it would have been like if his bodyguard had been out of control, and shuddered.

"In that case if I were you I would avoid him like the plague for the next couple of hours."

"How did you know I was the one he fell for?" Sahar asked, pointing at himself.

Inui shrugged, "You just made it obvious, and there was an 80% chance of you being the one."

---

Tezuka and Fuji had switched positions so Fuji rested on the other's stomach. Fuji's shirt had been discarded to some unknown place of the lifeboat and had recently been joined by Tezuka's.

Fuji traced Tezuka's muscles as the other placed soft kisses along his collarbone.

"Mm." Fuji paused, sitting up enough so Tezuka's lips were no longer in kissing range. "Did you hear something?"

Silence.

"No."

"I was sure I heard something just now." Fuji insisted.

"I didn't hea-"

The sound of wood breaking was impossible to miss.

"What in th-" Fuji didn't get a chance to finish what he was saying when the world fell away from him.

_To be continued…_

**Author's Note**- Sorry for the lateness but you all know me well enough by now that this is nothing new. I was waiting to update because one of my readers, who had been a loyal reviewer and someone I considered a friend hadn't posted a review yet. That was like a huge blow to my ego and I wash crushed. No reason to punish you guys though. I got over that ego and am a better person for it. I also started a new story that I love. It's in first person though and I had trouble switching back to third. School is starting and I have other stories I'm working on but I want you guys to know that this story will have an end. I'm not quitting on it because I like it too much. Also sorry about oocness, it's been awhile since I worked on PoT and I need to get back into the swing of things. Hopefully I'll be back to normal by next chapter.

"Hey author lady," Ryoma stomps over to me with a very annoyed look on his face. "Thanks for all the love."

"Don't use sarcasm on me!"

"Why didn't you put everyone in this chapter!?" Ryoma glares at me. "I see who your favorites are. Not me or Eiji I see. The two characters this story is under. Does that ring a bell?"

"You're being out of character because you're talking too much." I point out. "Everyone will be in the next chapter and it'll be longer. Now go away."

"You don't talk to Echizen like that!" Momoshiro storms in.

"And now we fade out…"


End file.
